


4Walls

by lykelee171



Series: 4Walls, a series now apparently [1]
Category: Wanna One (Band)
Genre: 4Walls, Angst, Fluff and Angst, Implied Anger Issues, Implied Sexual Content, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, Irresponsible Drinking, M/M, Mental Health Issues, Minor Violence, On Purpose, Underage Drinking, relationship tags are inaccurate
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-10
Updated: 2019-08-23
Packaged: 2020-06-25 21:04:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 27,621
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19753792
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lykelee171/pseuds/lykelee171
Summary: Completed ☺️College AU where the 4Walls is Swing College's version of the F4-- filthy rich and very handsome.But rumours say that the 4 of them are dating each other, what do you think?Prequel to Crazy Rich AsiansProse adaptation to 4Walls socmed au on my twt (Titled so because this was originally a socmed au on my twt with no name lol)





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Promised for a long time. Happy 1 year anniversary to my first socmed ever. Also, happy Day 1 of #seasonsof4walls And also, Happy belated birthday to fluffy Shaza uwu

Jinyoung was nervous. And rightfully so. He had just transferred to the second year at Swing College and he knew nobody. He took a deep breath to try and compose himself before he entered the lecture hall.  
  
_Hi, my name is Bae Jinyoung. Is this seat taken? May I sit here?_ He rehearsed in his head as he walked up the steps. He received looks, something he was familiar with because of his smaller than average face. _Everyone probably knows now that I'm new_ , Jinyoung felt the anxiety rising up his chest. _Push it down, it'll be alright. Just find a seat. Get through the first day._ But he started to feel light-headed. So he immediately took the next seat in his view.   
  
He kept his head down as he shrugged off his backpack and jacket, desperate to cool his spiking temperature. He felt the stares coming at him at all directions. But he swallowed his fear and took calming breaths.  
  
His brother's words echoed inside his head; _it's college, make friends!_ He said it like it was the easiest thing in the world. But to Jinyoung, it was anything but. He went through his entire first year in C9 college without any friends and to be honest, he actually liked that. There were no expectations from his peers, no pressure. Just him and the books, a step closer to achieving his dream.  
  
But he couldn't deny that he was lonely at times. _Maybe he should give it a shot...just 1 friend?_ __  
  
He mustered up his courage and turned to his left, only to see a male with arms outstretched against the table, fiddling with his phone. _He's alone, so he should be safe to talk to_ , Jinyoung decided, not knowing what he was about to get involved with.  
  
"Hi, my name is Bae Jinyoung, I'm new here-"   
  
"Bae?" The male cut him off, nearly bouncing out of his seat. "Are you perhaps family of Bae Suzy?"   
  
"Bae Suzy?"  
  
"Tall, extremely pretty? Graduated last year?" The male elaborated.  
  
Jinyoung shook his head in response.  
  
"Bummer," the man smiled, eyes disappearing behind his cheeks. "I'm Daniel by the way and welcome to Swing College!"  
  
"T-thank you," Jinyoung felt nervous again as he heard hushed whispers around him. But Daniel didn't seem to pay any mind because he rose to his feet and waved enthusiastically to someone who Jinyoung assumed to be a friend of his.  
  
The male approached and clapped Daniel's hand in greeting before sitting behind Daniel. Daniel spun around and started conversing with the male. "Did you see this?" Daniel snickered as he pulled out a cat picture on his phone. "Ori got herself stuck in the vase."  
  
The male slapped Daniel on the shoulder. "You put her in there, didn't you?"   
  
"Minhyun hyung," Daniel deadpans. "I didn't. That was just one time. She did this all on her own."  
  
Just then, another male plopped down in the seat beside Minhyun, resting his head against the table. "Our Jihoonie must have spent the whole night gaming," Daniel cooed as he ruffled the man's hair.   
  
"Let me sleep a bit more," Jihoonie(?) whined into his arm.   
  
Daniel laughed and whipped out a coffee cup from under his seat and placed it beside Jihoon. "Americano~" Daniel sung.  
  
Minhyun did the same, also pulling out a cup of coffee for the shorter male. "What time did you sleep last night, Jihoon?"   
  
Jihoon looked up to grab Minhyuns coffee (causing Daniel to pout) and took a sip. "4am."  
  
Both males signed in disagreement, causing Jihoon to smirk.  
  
It was only then that Jihoon noticed Jinyoung's presence. His eyebrows raised in question as he leaned to Minhyun to whisper, quite audibly, "Who's that?"   
  
Minhyun merely shrugged.  
  
Daniel was about to answer when the doors were slammed open, creating a dramatic entrance for another student who ran towards them. He heaved as he tried to catch his breath.  
  
Jihoon snickered, "I think you beat Niel hyung's PB record for that sprint!"   
  
Daniel giggled into the back of his hand, laughing at the state his friend was in.  
  
"* **wheeze** * You know I'm-- * **chokes** * not * **gags** *"   
  
The 3 other boys broke out in laughter.   
  
"This has been the most I've ran, and the fastest, in the past 10 years," the male managed to speak between breaths.  
  
"Ong Seongwu, take a seat!" The professor bellowed as he entered the lecture hall.   
  
Seongwu whipped his head to look at Jinyoung and blinked. Before Jinyoung could offer his seat, Seongwu dropped to the floor, sitting crossed legged like a kindergartener at storytime, earning more laughs from his friends.  
  
Jinyoung was overwhelmed with guilt. _Was he sitting in Seongwu's seat?_ But he was scared frozen. His first day had barely begun and he already felt like he had overstayed his welcome.  
  
He was intimidated. There was something about the 4 guys together; they exude charisma and power, possibly due to their extremely good looks. _What's up with that? Is it possible for 4 men to look like that?_ __  
  
_And they had to be very influential_ , Jinyoung thought as he recalled the looks he was given. Along with the usual curious looks were menacing glares from the other students, as if outraged with Jinyoung's decision to sit where he did. _But what could he do now? He couldn't possibly move in the middle of the welcome back address._  
  
Just then, the 4 men rose from their seats dramatically and proceeded to squeeze out of their seats and walk out of the lecture hall, bags in tow. There was just 10 minutes left to the period, but everyone else paid them no mind, not even the lecturer. Almost as if such a scene was common for them.   
  
__Who were they?   
  
  


* * *

  
  
"Who are you?" A girl stopped by Jinyoung's seat after the welcome back address.    
  
"B-bae Jinyoung," he answered meekly at the group of students starting to form around him.   
  
"Are you Suzy's brother?" Another girl asked.   
  
"No..."    
  
Then they started hounding him with questions like  _ why did you make Seongwu sit on the floor? Who do you think you are to sit with the 4walls? What is a new face doing in the 2nd year of college?  _   
  
The attention Jinyoung received overwhelmed him. He felt himself slowly lose focus and he struggled to hold onto his consciousness; he wasn't going to let himself become the laughing stock for fainting in front of the whole class.   
  
Just as the first bead of cold sweat rolled down the side of his forehead, he felt a hand grab his wrist to tug him forward. Unsure of what was happening but desperate to leave the suffocating lecture theatre, Jinyoung grabbed his bag and allowed himself to be dragged away by a tiny male, hair bleached blonde.   


* * *

  
  
"Guys, meet Bae Jinyoung," the tiny male, Jinyoung now knows to be Daehwi, introduced to the group of boys seated at the cafeteria.   
  
"Ooh! Related to Suzy Bae?" Another guy, Jaehwan, asked. Jinyoung was getting frustrated with that same question. And he grew even more annoyed at the fact that everyone seemed to be disappointed with his answer. So, for the millionth time that morning, Jinyoung denied.   
  
"Since I saved you from the fangirls, you will buy me lunch, right?" Daehwi asked, sending a wink Jinyoung's way and he swore his heart did one last  _ badump _ before stopping for a whole minute.   
  
Jinyoung blinked in response, unsure of how to react to this situation.  _ Was Daehwi hitting on him now? _   
  
"First day of school and you already have fangirls?" The guy from Busan, Woojin, perked up. "Looks like you have yourself some competition, Daehwi-ah."    
  
Daehwi smacked Woojin hard on the back in warning, "Not fangirls of him. But fangirls of the 4walls. Jinyoung is braver than the marines, he sat next to the 4walls on his first day. He even stole Seongwu's seat."   
  
"I didn't steal it, I didn't know-- wait, what do you mean 4walls? Are they an idol group or something?" Jinyoung said.   
  
"4walls is what the fangirls call them," Guanlin explained. "They are the sons of the richest and most influential families in this country. And combined with their intellect and good looks, everyone goes gaga over them."   
  
Guanlin pulled out his phone and loaded some pictures and continued the introduction.    
  
Hwang Minhyun was the top student of their class last year, earning full marks for many modules. He upheld the image of the perfect son, participating in and building multiple charity events.    
  
Academically, 2nd place was clinched by Park Jihoon. Contrary to his small stature and beautiful looks, rumours say that he becomes terrifying if you got on his bad side. No one had ever seen him smile before and many believed that that is testament to the rumours. Nonetheless, those two were the poster boys for the college, being the perfect mix of beauty and brains.    
  
Then there was Ong Seongwu, known for being able to persuade anyone to do anything. One of the craziest tales was his revenge on a sunbae who stole his dinner date one wild party night. He managed to convince that sunbae's  **mother** to spend the night with him. It was a tale many believed because of his charming demeanour and cheerful personality.   
  
Then there was Kang Daniel, the college's athletic star and also resident playboy. With a body like his, it was no wonder he excelled in every sport he tried out for and also his performance in bed.    
  
The 4walls have been inseparable since kindergarten and they are known for keeping to themselves, never making friends outside of this friend group. They established a chess club together, a society so exclusive that they were the only members. They own a whole room to themselves for this, and rumours say that chess club was just a facade for all the illegal and obscene activities they partake in on campus grounds.  _ They must be groundless rumours, right? _ __  
__  
"Do you think I pissed them off?" Jinyoung was getting worried now. "Should I change schools?"   
  
"I'd give it a few days," Sungwoon replied. "They aren't that childish. This is trivial to them."    
  
This did nothing to ease Jinyoung's worries. But then Daehwi gave his hand a small squeeze, alerting Jinyoung to the fact that they never let go of their hands this whole time.   
  
__ At least he made some friends?

  
  


* * *

  
  


Woojin’s muscles twitched under his skin, itching to start moving. He was there for a dance practice and he was nervous, armpits already damp under his hoodie. He looked out the small window on the door, noticing a baby pink cap pacing back and forth.  _ It was nice to know that he wasn’t the only one nervous.  _ Then the cap disappeared, and loud laughter resonated from the outside. He turned to the male seated to his right, fiddling on his phone, “Samuel, shall we go out to have a look?” 

Both of them rose and stepped out of the dance studio, only to find ¾ of the 4Walls in a compromising position. Jihoon currently had his arm hooked around Daniel’s neck in a chokehold, the latter’s face turning red in both laughter and suffocation. Seongwu, on the other hand, was on the ground, hands holding onto Jihoon’s thigh for support as tears of laughter rolled down his cheeks. 

Upon seeing their audience, Seongwu wiped off his tears and pushed himself up. He proceeded to separate Daniel from Jihoon before introducing the males in front of them, “Niel, Hoon, this is Woojin, Hyungseob and Samuel.”

Woojin, Hyungseob and Samuel waved shyly.

“Hi, I am Daniel,” Daniel introduced, before looking at Jihoon, endearingly, but Jihoon was glaring back with his arms crossed. So Daniel grabbed Jihoon by the shoulders to spin him to face the boys, “And this angry Jigglypuff is Jihoon. Please take good care of us!” Daniel pushed the back of Jihoon’s head, forcing him to bow along with him.

Woojin swore he heard Jihoon growl. 

He couldn’t help but wonder how he got here, to be in the presence of the 4Walls. (Well not all of them but it was close) They were the closest thing to what the school had to royalty; they had an air of intimidation around them that made Woojin shake inside. Woojin could not remember anything that happened from last dance practice. All he knew was that he had somehow mustered up his courage to ask Seongwu if they could dance together for the charity concert and not only had Seongwu agreed, he recruited Woojin into a dance number with the 4Walls. 

_ How was it fair that the 4Walls were equally good at dancing as they were with everything else?  _

Seongwu even told Woojin that he had intended to invite him before he approached him first. And that was mind-blowing to Woojin. Seongwu had been watching  _ him  _ at practice? He liked  _ his  _ dancing? Woojin was surprised he hadn’t melted into a puddle of slime then and there. 

“I wish Minhyun hyung could join us,” Jihoon whined as the group of boys entered the dance studio together. That earned a smack on the back by Seongwu, “Don’t say that when I invited Hyungseob here as his replacement,” Seongwu warned Jihoon.

“But it is true, you even sat on him earlier as a form of coercion,” Daniel stepped up in defence. 

Seongwu merely frowned in annoyance, “Fine, I admit that.”

  
  


* * *

Woojin couldn’t help but think that their dynamic was so weird. He stared at the trio and he was growing increasingly confused. 

_ “Rumours say that they are all dating each other. All 4 of them.”  _ Was what Samuel had told him before. 

Based on what he had observed today, he had been convinced earlier that Daniel and Jihoon were the ones dating, but now, he was not so sure. The 6 of them had just ordered fried chicken, taking a break from practice to eat. Seongwu and Daniel would eat their chicken before handing their bones to Jihoon who would eventually (after finishing his own chicken of course) nibble them clean. Daniel would steal Seongwu’s drink every now and then and Jihoon would complain about how Daniel said he didn’t want a drink when they ordered in the first place. Seongwu would tend to the two, taking napkins to wipe Daniel’s and Jihoon’s greasy lips.

_ What kind of dynamic was this? _

Woojin looked towards Samuel in silent question, who was busy devouring his own chicken to pay any notice. 

* * *

The 4Walls were amazing dancers; it was a pity that Minhyun couldn’t join them this year. Daniel was very fluid in his movements, and Seongwu was very clean and impactful, and Jihoon’s dancing… Woojin was enthralled. He was awed by the way the pink boy moved, all movements seemed so smooth, so easy. He was truly a jack of all trades, Woojin mentally evaluated. He was able to do so many different styles of dance. Most importantly, he absorbed everything like a sponge. Everyone there had indeed learned the dance very quickly, but Jihoon was able to pick up a brand new genre within seconds; while waiting for their food to arrive, Daniel demonstrated some breakdancing tricks, giving Jihoon a few verbal instructions. Within a minute, Jihoon could do it. Woojin felt the warmth of pride wash over his own body and when he looked at Daniel and Seongwu, they were beaming with pride too. 

Woojin continued to watch as Daniel whispered something into Jihoon’s ear, causing the latter to break into the most beautiful smile Woojin had ever seen. It was the first time he had ever seen Jihoon smile and he was shook. Jihoon’s eyes crinkled and his entire face lit up, just like an innocent boy receiving presents on christmas day. And then, as if telepathically connected, both Daniel and Jihoon fell backwards onto the floor whilst holding onto each other, bursting into uncontrollable giggles. 

_ What are they laughing about?  _ Woojin wondered. And when he turned to Seongwu’s direction, he noticed the dip between his eyebrows narrow; Seongwu must be curious too. 

_ Great, he now has got even more competition for the pink jellybean’s attention--- wait, what was he thinking? _

Woojin felt his heart pound hard in his chest.  _ Uh oh, not again…  _

Then, Minhyun’s head popped through the door. His eyes scanned the dance studio before settling onto his friends. “Chess club, now,” he urged before closing the door. 

Almost like they were part of the same vessel, Daniel, Jihoon and Seongwu took a quick glance to each other before grabbing their bags to leave. 

“Let’s call it a day!” Seongwu announced to the other boys.

Samuel scooted to Woojin's side, whispering in his ear: “I tell you, all of them probably bone in Chess club.” 

* * *

“Bring out the vodka,” Minhyun groaned after they entered their club room, plopping into the massive beanbag. “I need to get wasted tonight.” 

Jihoon approached the elder and the latter stretched out his right arm to accommodate him. Jihoon sat by Minhyun's side and leaned back into his arm, watching him curiously.

“The goody-two-shoes Hwang Minhyun wants to get drunk on a school night?” Daniel snickered. “And it's only the first day of the school term?”

“I can only drink light tonight,” Seongwu whined, dropping into the adjacent beanbag. “I have an 8am lecture tomorrow.” 

“I'll bring out the wine then,” Daniel strolled to their wine cooler. “Red or white?” 

“Red,” Jihoon called out. 

“Trying to get drunk on red wine? Challenge accepted!” Minhyun chortled. “Oh, on cheap wine? You're making it harder for me, Niel.”

Daniel pouted in response as he cradled the 3 bottles of red wine. “This is good quality wine, although relatively cheap. I'm not sacrificing my expensive wine for your stress-induced binge session.”

“What brought this on?” Jihoon asked. “Did your dad say something again?”

Minhyun popped open the first bottle skilfully with his thumb before bringing his lips to the head for a swig. “More like what he wants me to do.” 

“Aren't you already joining him for the re-election campaign events?” Seongwu asked.

“He wants me to sit in for the debates as well, as if I don't already have classes to study for.” 

“Told you, you should've just joined the concert. You listen to him once, he'll expect you to listen every time.” Seongwu wagged his finger at Minhyun.

Daniel popped open another bottle for himself, taking a gulp directly from the bottle too. “Your dad scares me. I wouldn't dare defy him either.” 

Jihoon rose from his seat, causing Daniel to look at him in question. “I'm not like you animals. I'm getting a wine glass. Seongwu hyung, you want one?”

“Yes, that balloon shaped one,” Seongwu replied, causing Jihoon to roll his eyes. 

“You spent 200 dollars on a wine glass. ONE!” Jihoon fussed as he stalked to their cabinets. “You are going to spend all your wealth away!” 

“You'll have to provide for me then, Jihoonie,” Seongwu replied flirtatiously. “I need you in my life, forever.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 11/07/19 (3168)


	2. Chapter 2

Guanlin missed his parents dearly. As the only child in his family, you would think that they would've never sent him alone to Korea to study, but they did. “It's all for the bigger picture,” his father told him. And that big picture was playing out today. 

“Guanlin-ah, I heard Maroo Industries’ son is in the same University as you,” his mother said, readjusting the black tie under his white collar. “So let's make a new friend today, alright?” 

In any other circumstance, Guanlin would be nonchalant about his parents’ ulterior motives, but this time, he couldn't help but be ambivalent. “Mum, we are going to his mother's funeral. That's not the time to befriend him.” 

“Your father and his are doing business together. It'll be good if you could get to know Jihoon. Maybe you can even comfort him.”

Guanlin intended on placating his parents, but when they arrived, he noticed the 4Walls seated together.  _ Looks like there was no way around this, he was not needed, _ Guanlin thought, feeling smug. Nonetheless, his parents approached Mr Park to offer his condolences. 

“Our Jihoon goes to the same university as Guanlin,” Mr Park introduces. “Guanlin, you should join them at their table. I’m sure you know the boys.” Guanlin squirmed under Mr Park’s gaze. He felt exposed although Guanlin didn’t utter a single word. My Park’s eyes were unwavering, face expressionless, making Guanlin wonder if he was genuine about the invitation. With an encouraging (or threatening) pat on the back from his own father, Guanlin gave a respectful bow before backing away from the “adults”.

Guanlin never considered himself an anxious person. He was brought up to remain confident regardless of the situation and make as many mistakes as possible while he was young, because it was more important to learn from them. But perhaps, he shouldn’t make a mistake around the 4Walls. 

He paused a couple of steps before his target, feeling the burning stares of his parents at the back of his head. He sighed and squared his shoulders, gathering all the courage he had left in his emergency store for situations like this and approached.  _ Fake it till you make it right? _

It was Minhyun who noticed Guanlin first, and Guanlin swore his heart stopped when their eyes met. Minhyun’s eyes narrowed in recognition, eyebrows jerked up in question. 

Jihoon must have been looking at Minhyun because he turned around to look. “Are you Lai Guanlin?” Jihoon asked, rising from his seat. The other males at the table turned to each other in confusion. 

“I’m sorry to interrupt but my parents kinda made me approach you,” Guanlin said, hoping that honesty was the best move. 

Jihoon tried to hide a smirk, looking away for a moment. “This may be your parents’ worst decision yet. We don’t encourage obedience here.”

It was as if Jihoon’s snark was contagious, Guanlin could feel his chest puff up (metaphorically of course. Because to do so physically would look ridiculous). “I was under the impression that your alliance was the product of your parents’ instructions too.”

Guanlin waited for Jihoon’s reaction and was pleasantly surprised when the latter’s face broke out into a wide grin. He went on his tip toes and patted Guanlin on the head affectionately. “Can we keep him? He is so cute. Like a little chick.”

Guanlin blinked, stunned by the sudden change in character. 

Jihoon pulled out his chair and guided Guanlin to take a seat while the other 3 guys gave him a staredown. Guanlin squirmed under their gaze. “Why is your korean so good if you've only moved here last year?” Jihoon asked, rounding the table to sit beside Minhyun instead. 

“Must be because of the kdramas,” Guanlin laughed a little, slightly embarrassed about this admission. 

Jihoon's eyes brightened at the mention of one of his favourite things, “Really? Which one are you watching now?” 

“I just finished Goblin.” 

“REALLY? I LOVE THAT ONE!” Jihoon was nearly bouncing out of his seat in excitement.

With a small cough in warning, Daniel grabbed the glass of water in front of Guanlin and reached over to place it in front of Jihoon. “The water is yours.” 

Jihoon paid Daniel no attention, “The other guys don't appreciate kdramas. What are you watching next? Let's watch it together!” 

“I watched Sky Castle with you,” Minhyun frowned, appearing slightly hurt by Jihoon's accusation. 

“And you watched that Suzy one with me!” Seongwu piped in. 

Jihoon merely rolled his eyes in response, “But I can tell you aren't interested in it, hyungs. Minhyun hyung, I watched a few episodes without you and you didn't even notice. And Seongwu hyung, you watched it because of Suzy noona. Which reminds me, I didn't know she had a younger brother?”

“Bae Jinyoung isn't related to Suzy noona,” Daniel said. “If you miss her so much hyung, must as well give her a call.”

Seongwu smirked, “What made you think I missed her? Why will I if there's an unread text from her in my phone right now?”

“I don't believe you,” Daniel scoffed. “Even if there was, it'll probably be a text of condolences she wants you to pass on to Jihoonie.”

“You are just jealous that she'd rather sleep with me than you,” Seongwu taunted. 

Minhyun let out a laugh, “So it's true then? The text is to offer her condolences?” 

“What a fake b*tch,” Jihoon muttered, but for everyone to hear. “She could've sent it to me personally instead.” 

Daniel pulled a face of incredulity, “You were her favourite, Jihoon-ah. Why is she a b*tch to you?” 

“She obviously needs a favour from Seongwu hyung, that's why she texted him. And the fact that she didn't text means she was playing me all along. Her new movie is lacking investment, especially since her scandal last year. And who would happily whip out hundreds of thousands of dollars for the likes of Ms Suzy Bae?” Jihoon looked at Seongwu accusingly.

“You promised to keep this secret,” Seongwu whined, eyes nearly bulged out of his sockets.

“What secret?” Daniel asked with an eyebrow cocked. 

“I didn't tell anyone you doofus,” Jihoon smirked at Seongwu before redirecting his attention to Daniel. “Seongwu funded Suzy's last drama.”

Guanlin chuckled in amusement, watching everything unfold. Seongwu was now dishing out explicit insults at Jihoon while the latter responded with intelligent comebacks, angering Seongwu further. Daniel was dying of hysterical laughter while Minhyun had his attention glued to his phone. 

The 4Walls were very different from how they were portrayed. Guanlin doesn't know how he'll fit in to the whole grand scheme of things but he was just satisfied to have found someone to watch his next kdrama with.

* * *

  
  


Jihoon groaned as he tried to turn in his bed, attempting to find a comfortable position when he felt a deadweight across his abdomen. Groggily, he rubbed his eyes open and noticed the familiar mop of hair.  _ Strange,  _ he recalled falling asleep alone in his room last night. He gazed at the sleeping man, crouched by his bedside, arm outstretched to chain Jihoon’s torso to the bed and broad shoulders hunched to support his heavy head.  _ He is going to wake up aching all over, _ Jihoon thought as he weaved his fingers through Daniel’s hair. 

“Yah, KangDan,” Jihoon spoke softly as Daniel slowly stirred awake. “Did something happen again? Why are you sleeping here?”

A wave of dread washed over Jihoon as he recalled the last time he had woken up in a similar predicament.  _ Was that yesterday? Or the day before? _ _ Did it happen again? _

As Daniel’s head rose, eyes drowsily settling on Jihoon's own, a slow gentle grin stretched across his face, “How did you sleep last night?”

Jihoon found his vision focus on Daniel, mind still hazy with sleep and confusion.  _ How  _ **_did_ ** _ he sleep? _ He had no clue. And he felt the frustration bubble inside him.

Almost as if he had sensed Jihoon's unease, Daniel reached to grasp Jihoon's hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. “What's wrong? Did you have another bad dream?” 

Rustling could be heard from his bedsides as 2 more familiar bed heads popped up like whack-a-moles. In other circumstances, Jihoon would have giggled at this sight but Jihoon felt heavy, his emotions weighing down the mood of the entire room. Seongwu climbed onto Jihoon's bed, crawling on all fours, before plopping onto Jihoon's lap. Seongwu hummed, like a purring cat, as Daniel instinctively scratched behind Seongwu's ears. Jihoon felt the dip of his bed on his right as Minhyun sat by Jihoon's side.

"Did it happen again?" Jihoon asked, head hung low as he played with his fingers, stressed that he couldn't remember anything this time.   
  
_ He's going to bite his fingernails again _ , Daniel thought. That was Jihoon's tick; whenever he got nervous, he would chew on the edge of his fingers, as if attempting to bite off all his worries.   
  
Daniel grabbed Jihoon's fidgeting hands, "I came over to check on you and when I arrived, you were screaming so much..." Daniel knew better than to lie to the little one. The last time he did, Jihoon didn't speak to him for a week.    
  
"I didn't know what to do so I called Minhyun and Seongwoo hyungs and we just slept here."   
  
Jihoon looked at Daniel questioningly. The other 2 boys watched quietly.   
  
They've got the whole telepathy thing down, and Daniel answered Jihoon's silent question, "We didn't wake you because the last time we did, you woke up with a panic attack remember? Isn't it better this time?"   
  
Jihoon's head dipped again, his fingers wriggling in Daniel's grip. "Hoon-ah, what are you thinking of now?"    
  
Daniel waited patiently for Jihoon's answer, but he was not prepared for this. Jihoon lifted his head to meet Daniel's gaze, his eyes brimming with tears, resembling shiny marbles. If Daniel's heart wasn't already pieces, this sight before him shattered Daniel's into smithereens as Jihoon's voice trembled, "I wish you had woken me up. At least maybe then I could remember meeting her in my dreams."

* * *

Everyone turned when the 4Walls entered the cafeteria. “The 4Walls have not been seen in the past 4 days, right?” Daehwi asked. “I wonder what happened?”

“Jihoon’s mother passed away,” Guanlin piqued, taking another scoop of bibimbap nonchalantly.

His friends looked at Guanlin in alarm, mirroring each other like meerkats. “Really?” Jinyoung asked.

“There wasn’t a report on the news though?” Sungwoon said.

“Why would they report that on the news?” Jinyoung asked. 

“Because Jihoon’s family is influential like that,” Daehwi replied, explaining the importance of Park Industries in the South Korean Entertainment industry. “They are involved in the construction of various buildings all around Seoul, from corporate businesses to large scale concert venues. That new library in campus? You know, the one with the 5 underground levels of study spaces? Their creation as well.”

Jinyoung’s jaw dropped, “You mentioned their wealth, but I never envisioned it to be to this extent...”

“If it wasn’t reported on the news, how did you learn of her passing then, Guanlin?” Sungwoon asked. 

Almost as if he was caught stealing from the piggy bank, Guanlin’s eyes widened. He blinked a couple of times before gathering his tray with his right hand and his bag with his other. But Daehwi foresaw that and pulled Guanlin back down onto his seat. “Explain,” Daehwi demanded.

* * *

“And Daniel hyung was wearing briefs that day and so he had a larger surface area of naked skin,” Guanlin recounted. “So the hyungs stripped down to their underwear. And, like I mentioned earlier, the only rule is no screaming.” Guanlin paused to let out a snigger. “Daniel hyung was complaining because apparently Minhyun hyung had a big advantage. Minhyun hyung had such smooth hairless skin so he barely winced.” 

His friends blinked, silence washing over them. And Daehwi took this opportunity to clarify, “So they made a bet and this punishment, the Sphinx cat, was done?”

“The Sphinx cat is Jihoon hyung’s favourite,” Guanlin explained, “He must be a...what do you call someone who loves to see the other in pain? Masochistic?”

“NO!” Woojin interrupted, “Sadist! You mean a sadist. Masochistic is… unless that is what you were referring to…”

“Woojin-ah,” Jisung warned, slapping the thigh of the younger. “Don’t teach Guanlin bad things.” 

Guanlin merely shrugged in nonchalance, “They only obliged because Jihoon had been rather depressed lately. In fact, Seongwu hyung is planning to take Jihoon on a trip to Tokyo soon I think?” 

“My next question was to ask Guanllin how he had gotten so close to them to know all of this but since he has avoided the question earlier, I don’t think he will give us an answer now either. So I will go study now,” Daehwi grabbed his bag to prepare to leave.

Jinyoung did the same and caught up to Daehwi, falling into pace with him, backpack slung over one shoulder. “The hyungs say you top the class, why do you still study so hard?”

Daehwi scoffed, a sweet smile dancing across his features, “You think I study hard?”   
  


Jinyoung merely nodded, and Daehwi giggled. He usually gets annoyed with this comment, even if they were coming from his friends, but there was something about how Jinyoung asked him so innocently, as if genuinely curious about the workings of his thoughts and that melted him inside.  _ Or maybe you are wishing for him to care about you _ , Daewhi quickly swatted that thought away. 

He always wanted to be the very best for his mother, who single-handedly raised him to the man he had become today. She had sacrificed her dreams for him and he was not going to take that for granted. He was forever indebted to her, and nothing he does in his lifetime would ever be enough to properly thank her, but he was prepared to work his hardest to make her the proudest mother in the world. He wanted to earn her a life of comfort and luxury, but for now, he had to be content with providing her good grades and a good college degree that can secure an amazing job after his graduation. 

But as he matured, he grew greedy. He was aware of his capabilities, his potential, and hence, he never wanted to settle for anything less than the best. He was most comfortable when he is at the top. 

“I’m not,” Daehwi replied.

“You aren’t studying hard?”

“No, I mean I’m not the top. Minhyun hyung is.”   
  


“You don’t have to be! 2nd place is high enough! It’s impressive to me!” 

  
  
  


The thing about competition, when you have been winning all your life, anything else is a step down. Daehwi knew he could do better; he just didn’t know he needed to. But now, he had a person to beat. And he was determined to work his bottoms off this semester.  _ And I know that it will pay off. _

* * *

Jaehwan hummed as he strolled across the college’s courtyard. The gentle night breeze tickled his bare arms, prompting a melody in his head for some odd reason. He imagined his fingers grazing the guitar strings, maybe adding a few piano keys in the background. The wind accompanied the tune in his head like a flute, a soft chill that enveloped him whole. But then he stopped to watch the tall lean male, pale skin luminated by the moonlight, picturesque. 

“May I sit here?” he asked Minhyun, causing the latter to jump a bit in surprise. 

“Sure,” Minhyun responded. “I don’t own this bench.”   
  
Jaehwan laughed, “Your father does actually. He invested in the art wing of the college, of which this bench is probably a part of.”

Minhyun merely smiled, but Jaehwan felt that it looked sad. Looking at Minhyun up close, Jaehwan couldn’t help but be entranced with his beauty; his tall, nose bridge, smooth skin, small yet plump lips.  _ Be still by pounding heart, _ Jaehwan chided what felt like an gorilla locked up in his ribcage. It was his only chance to talk to his crush, and he wasn’t about to mess things up.

But Minhyun beat him to it, speaking before Jaehwan even had a chance to. “I envy you.”

Jaehwan felt his soul dissociate from his body when Minhyun turned to look at him, eyes locking with his. Jaehwan forced a swallow. “Envious? Of me? The Hwang Minhyun is envious of me?”

Minhyun tried his best to hold in a chuckle, but the sparkle in his eyes gave him away. He knew of the students’ infatuation with his friends and himself, but never got close enough to experience it firsthand. Or maybe Jaehwan was just  _ that  _ kind of person, someone who spoke whatever came to mind.  _ How refreshing _ .  _ Another area of envy _ .

“You know what you want to do and you do it,” Minhyun replied, returning his direction to the moon ahead. “Jaehwan-ah, I hope to see your album on the shelves one day. Your voice is beautiful.”   
  


He had what Minhyun didn’t; a dream and the talent to achieve said dream. Minhyun had no direction for his future and he was slightly afraid. For all of his life, he followed the path paved perfectly for him. He followed his father’s orders, studied whatever his father wanted him to, attended all of the events that he had grown to despise. Seeing Jaehwan that night on the streets of Seoul busking with his guitar, singing his heart out, made Minhyun feel something. He yearned to have a dream he could be passionate about. He wanted that. He wanted to fight for something. He wanted to be in control of his own path. 

_ “Well tell me what you want to do then,” _ Minhyun could hear his father’s voice echoing in his skull, words of mockery that would pass undetected by others, but not Minhyun. And begrudgingly, Minhyun had to admit that he had a point. He had  _ no _ idea of what he wanted, but that was because he was made that way. Growing up, Minhyun never had a say in anything and now, he felt like an empty vessel, a robot controlled by his father, a perfect son of the president of the country.

But Jaehwan was oblivious to all of this as this was the first time they had ever spoken. They first met last week and Minhyun left a $50 note in his guitar case. But Minhyun hadn’t known that that simple act of kindness had actually allowed Jaehwan’s dream to live another day.

Music was not sustainable, especially if you weren’t a trainee at any entertainment company. Jaehwan knew this and had been prepared to abandon his dream that night, his last show, but Hwang Minhyun appeared like a prince on a white horse.  _ Hwang Minhyun, the man with no dream, just saved mine _ . 

Jaehwan was determined to help, in any way that he can.

  
  
  
  
  
  


_ And hopefully, Minhyun could fall in love with me too? _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 12/07/19 (3168)
> 
> Chapter 3 tomorrow! Hold on, there is a lot of characters here and I regret writing this the way I did in my og socmed haha 
> 
> Hope you are enjoying the 4 days of 4Walls!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All is fiction. People make mistakes. Forgive me please for what Ive done to Daehwi :((

Daehwi could feel the excitement bubbling up his chest when he received his script. A full mark, all his hard work had finally paid off. He attempted to conceal his joy as he bounded back up the steps to his original seat, awaiting for the professor’s announcement for the class rankings. 

_ This should be enough. This is it.  _ Daehwi waited in anticipation, his knee bouncing up and down as he watched his academic rival collect his own paper. Daehwi squinted, hoping to catch a glimpse of any tells on Minhyun’s face but found none.  _ Even if he had a full mark too, at least we would be joint firsts,  _ Daehwi thought. 

Daehwi watched as Minhyun swung his arm across Jihoon’s shoulder, pulling the younger close for a minute of whispers. He watched as Jihoon smiled meekly, a rare sight from the rumoured ice prince. The whole school knew that Park Jihoon rarely smiled, and like his other friends of the 4Walls, he never interacted with anyone else. An air of mystery surrounded him because he rarely spoke, but every word he uttered carried a weight, drawing everyone to him. And this air of indifference exuded by the cold man before him intrigued Daehwi because he had never seen Jihoon flip a book or took a note in lectures. Unlike the other 4Walls, Jihoon attended every lecture but merely sat there, eyes glued to the screen, as if in a daze.  _ Maybe he has a photographic memory?  _ Daehwi considered, feeling a bit of jealousy spread across his chest. 

He had never seen Jihoon study before, and yet he could still get good grades, albeit lower than his own. Daehwi was smug.  _ Would Jihoon be jealous of my grades?  _ As the 4Walls attended the same school since kindergarten, it was a known fact that Jihoon often came second to Hwang Minhyun. 

_ And now he is third,  _ Daehwi held back a snigger. He couldn’t help but enjoy his tiny victory. But then he recalled the news of Jihoon's mother's passing, how Jihoon had missed a couple of classes along with the other 4Walls. Suddenly the taste of victory wasn't as sweet as before, especially since his win was due to their absences from class. Maybe he would get first place this time, but it would be because Minhyun hadn't attended some of the lectures. 

The 2 males sat in front of Daehwi. Daehwi attempted to peer over the crowns to look at the score on their papers but Minhyun leaned into Jihoon's ear, whispering furiously.

Everyone's attention was redirected to the professor when he cleared his throat, prepared to read out the names of the top 10 scorers for the exam. “...3rd place Park Jihoon, 2nd place Lee Daehwi and 1st place Hwang Minhyun. Good job everyone!”

  
  
  
  
  
  
  


The room heated up around him and Daehwi could feel the sweat gathering between his joints. He looked around and it seemed like he was the only one who felt so. The emotions swirled around his head, almost dizzying and his pounding heart didn’t help. Everyone started chattering around him, belongings rustling in the background while Daehwi just remained stunned. The professor must have dismissed them all as everyone is preparing to leave.

_ That was not possible. I had gotten a 100% in this exam _ . Daehwi felt his breathing quicken, acting like a cooling fan for an overheating desktop. 

On impulse, he stood from his seat, eyes locked on the 2 males before him. “What did you get on that test?” Daehwi demanded.

“None of your business,” Jihoon replied nonchalantly, gathering up his bag in preparation to leave.

“I wasn’t talking to you,” Daehwi grew frustrated. “Hwang Minhyun, what did you get on that test?!”

“Don’t talk to Jihoon or me like that,” Minhyun stood up, ready to leave with Jihoon in tow.

Daehwi grabbed onto Minhyun’s shoulder forcefully, yanking the older man back. He reached over and tore the exam script from Minhyun’s grasp.

“YAH!” Jihoon’s face was flushed with fury, eyes wide in shock. He shoved Daehwi away with his palms causing him to fall back into his seat. “What do you think you are doing?!”

Minhyun tucked Jihoon behind him, taking on a protective stance. “Have a look at the score then, if you wanted to see it so much,” he spoke with a sneer, eyes cold as ice.

_ Bullsh*t,  _ Daehwi wanted to scream. His blood boiled within him, anger clouding his vision.

“WHAT KIND OF PRIVILEGE IS THIS? GIVEN TO THE 4WALLS?” Daehwi felt his throat hurt as he yelled out. This attracted the attention of the remaining students, causing a crowd to gather. Was it anger over the fact that hard work would never beat money or connections? Or maybe it was the stress of everyone’s eyes on him at that moment? Because Daehwi found his mouth forming words out of his control. “OR IS IT BECAUSE YOU ARE THE SON OF THE PRESIDENT? A 101 PERCENT?! THAT IS PLAIN FAVOURITISM. DID YOU BRIBE THE PROFESSOR? WITH MONEY? OR MAYBE SPECIAL FAVOURS? EVERYONE HERE KNOWS ABOUT THE GAY RUMOURS. THEY HAVE TO BE TRUE. DO YOU USE THAT MOUTH OF YOURS JUST TO TOP THE CLASS EVERY TIME? AND JIHOON TOO, I’VE NEVER SEEN HIM STUDY.”

Everyone around them were whispering and pointing, phones directed at them, filming every second of Daehwi’s meltdown. But Daehwi was far from done. “I WORK SO HARD AND PFFT YOU GET SOMETHING LIKE 101%?! IS THIS THE KIND OF PERSON EVERYONE WORSHIPS? 4WALLS, A BUNCH OF POMPOUS SHITTY--”

Before Daehwi could even offload his bank of profanities saved for a moment like this, Seongwu stepped forward, emerging from the crowd to grip Daehwi’s collar. He stared straight into Daehwi’s eyes, pupils still and unmoving.  _ When had Seongwu gotten here? _

“I suggest you step out away now. There are many people watching us and you will regret if you continue. But if you decide that you really want to continue this, we will find you privately.” Daehwi shivered at the chilly tone of Seongwu’s voice, all anger dissipated. He nodded, now afraid, before running out of the lecture hall in shame.  _ What had he just done? _

  
  
  


* * *

“Jihoon-ah, go grab your luggage,” Seongwu instructed when the 3 of them arrived at the Chess club room. “I will wait here with Minhyun.”

Minhyun watched Seongwu warily as the latter’s hand started to shake behind his back. Jihoon was stoic, but left promptly, closing the door behind him. Silence enveloped them, and Seongwu brought hands to the front, now balled up in fists so tight, the veins were threatening to burst. 

“Minhyun-ah,” Seongwu asked through clenched teeth. He looked crazed, eyes unfocused although looking straight at Minhyun. “All this anger, I don’t know where to place it.”

Minhyun knew this was coming and rushed to lock the door. “Maybe we should start off with some water to cool down?”

“Cool down?!” Seongwu exclaimed incredulously. “I really want to punch that twat’s face in!” 

He panted, ribs drawing back so forcefully they could pierce his heart. He stalked towards the table and with a powerful swing, he smashed the chessboard in, splintering the wood around his fist.

“Seongwu-ah, you are going to hurt yourself!” Minhyun tried to keep his voice steady as he approached the angry hulk.

“The AUDACITY he had to talk to you OR JIHOON LIKE THAT?! And the despicable things he said? HE IMPLIED YOU-- WITH THE PROFESSORS-- HE… WHAT THE F*CK!”

Seongwu felt the rage overwhelm him once again as the words Daehwi said replayed in his head. He moved on to his next target, the set of metal lockers at the corner of the room. But before he could even get there, Minhyun hugged Seongwu from behind. Seongwu stilled, afraid that if he lost control, Minhyun would get hurt. 

Minhyun took this a signal to continue. “You held in your anger earlier because Jihoon was there, right? You did well, Seongwu-ah.” 

Minhyun felt Seongwu’s muscles relax a little. “If you continue hulk-smashing everything you see, I won’t let you go on the Japan trip alone with Jihoon…” Minhyun warned.

Seongwu sighed, letting out a stiff chuckle. “Even Daniel’s annoying whining wasn’t enough to stop me, what makes you think you could?”

“You owe me,” Minhyun laughed. “Daniel was prepared to buy over that hotel you guys were going to stay in just to cancel your booking. I stopped him.”

“Daniel is not very bright, is he?” Seongwu laughed harder now. “We can always find another hotel to stay in.”

“It was Daniel’s fault for not being able to join you guys anyway; Had he finished his presentation preparation a week ago like I suggested, he could’ve joined you guys. He has left it to the very last minute!”

Daniel had been very persistent when Seongwu first brought up the idea of a weekend getaway to Tokyo. He had invited them all but Minhyun had events (planned by his father) to attend to and Daniel had a presentation to plan. Daniel kicked up a fuss knowing that both of them would be alone in a room together and Seongwu made matters worse by rubbing that fact into Daniel’s face. He went as far as to book a private spa day for the both of them. 

This getaway was planned with Jihoon in mind. Seongwu’s heart broke when he watched Jihoon crumble day by day. The younger would conceal it from them very well, but when night time came, the vivid nightmares and the tears would tear them all apart. Everyone knew Jihoon needed a break. And when Seongwu learned that his family’s jet would be vacant for this weekend, he jumped into planning. 

Seongwu sank into the nearby beanbag, “How was Jihoon today? Before all the drama?”

“He seemed tired, but okay overall,” Minhyun reported. “I stayed with him last night and he still had those nightmares.” 

“You think Jihoonie would be the same on the trip too?” Seongwu asked, concerned. “The dreams?”

“Probably… But you know what to do, right?”

Seongwu let out a big sigh, “Jihoon doesn’t deserve any of this. He is the best person I’ve ever met. I don’t want him to hurt so much.” 

“It is because he is such a good person that he is hurting as much as he is. Otherwise, he wouldn’t care enough to feel so much.” Minhyun relented. “But he is a tough one. He will get through this.” 

Just then, the door handle jingled. “Hyung! The door locked itself again! Let me in!” Jihoon called out.

The 2 boys laughed. “No need, I will go out!” Seongwu replied, grabbing his luggage from the corner of the room. 

“If Daniel knew about your anger issues, he wouldn’t allow you alone with Jihoon on the trip,” Minhyun warned. 

“I will behave, I promise,” Seongwu reassured. He heard impatient knocks from the other side of the door, probably caused by Jihoon kicking it in irritation.

  
  


_ For Jihoon, _ Seongwu reminded himself as Minhyun opened the door.

  
  


* * *

  
  


Daniel burst into the chess room to see Minhyun nursing a headache, a bottle of water in hand. “Hyung! What happened? Where is Jihoon? And Seongwu hyung?”

“They just left,” Minhyun informed his frantic friend, fingers massaging his temple. “They should be checked in at the airport now.”

“They switched off their phones,” Daniel whined. “Didn’t even say goodbye to me. And I told Seongwu hyung to report to me! I had to find out about the drama through Twitter?”

Minhyun’s head throbbed. “Niel-ah, can you lower your voice, please,” Minhyun complained. “This whole fiasco is stressing me out.”

“I saw the video,” Daniel plopped next to Minhyun on the sofa. “But can you tell me what happened exactly?”

Minhyun sighed, “Remember the previous test?” Daniel nodded. “Prof mismarked my test and owed me a couple of marks so he told me he would forward it to the next test since he couldn’t change it then. Well, Daehwi got mad and well, the rest was probably in the video you watched.”

The accusations made by Daehwi reverberated in his skull. He could already seen the aftereffects of these baseless allegations. Since it was on twitter, everyone in the school must have seen it. It could have reached the public and his father too. He feared the consequences of this blowup. 

“What happened to the chessboard?” Daniel asked.

Minhyun stilled.

  
  
  
  


“I broke it.” A lie.

“Are you okay?” Daniel asked the older. “Does your dad know about this?”

_ I hope not. _

“Niel-ah, I don’t want to go home tonight,” Minhyun begged Daniel in desperation. “Can I please stay at yours?”

  
  


Daniel’s face brightened up at the suggestion of a sleepover. “Can we go out for drinks too? I could really use one.”

  
  


* * *

Jinyoung was frantically searching for Daehwi. He was deeply worried since he was not responding to any of his calls or text messages. The video recorded was swiftly taken down within the hour, no doubt done by the 4Walls, but everyone had already seen it. When Jinyoung watched it, all that was in Jinyoung’s mind was that he needed to find Daehwi as soon as possible. 

What caused more panic was the fact that Jisung, Sungwoon and Woojin hyungs were not contactable and Guanlin was still in a group study session. He felt like he was all alone in this. But he knew Daehwi needed him right now, so he swallowed all anxiety and focused on finding the one person who helped him when no one else did on the first day of school. 

Jinyoung knew Daehwi, although they hadn’t been friends for long. He found himself watching the younger whenever he was within close vicinity. He noticed the littlest of things, from the little twitch of his lip corners when he holds back a smile, to the random moments of him rolling his eyes up as if physically scanning his mind. (Turns out that Daehwi was busy reciting some economic essay in his mind mid-conversation. Everyone found that strange, but Jinyoung thought it was adorable.)

Jinyoung knew of Daehwi's ambitions and admired him for that. In his opinion, there was nothing wrong with wanting to be the best. In fact, shouldn’t that be what every student strived for? But he knew that the video was damning; it definitely portrayed Daehwi in a horrible light. Things were said and Daehwi looked like he was on the verge of crying. He knew he had to find Daehwi quick,  _ he feared what could happen next. _

He stared at Daehwi’s dorm room door, scared to knock for some reason. But he mustered up the courage and did. 

He waited for a response, but nothing. 

Jinyoung was about to head to the park next to look when he heard the faintest sound of shuffling sheets behind the door. He knocked even harder now, “Daehwi-ah, I know your inside. Could you please let me in?”

The rustling stopped. It grew dead silent. Jinyoung pressed his forehead against the cool surface of the door between them. “I know you don’t want to be alone so I am here. I am here for you like how you were there for me the first day of school. You were really cool, saving me from all those 4Walls fangirls. Now, let me return the favour.”

Jinyoung took a step back when he heard the lock on the door click. The door creaked a little to give a peep of the young man behind it. Jinyoung was used to receiving a bright smile from the male whenever they hung out, but this time, Daehwi was a shell of himself, eyes anchored to the ground. Jinyoung felt his heart break then and there. “Daehwi-ah,” he sighed, pushing through to gather the smaller male in his arms. 

He had expected this, but he didn’t know what to do. He just waited until Daehwi’s arms circled around Jinyoung’s back, shoulders shaking as he cried his eyes out. 

  
  
  


* * *

  
  


Daniel watched as Minhyun spiralled into his drunken giggily state, cheeks flushed and eyes crinkled so small they disappeared behind them. Daniel chugged another mug of beer, sighing. He was alert, alcohol did nothing to him. He raised a finger when he got the attention of the waiter, he needed one more. Minhyun giggled to himself, hands covering his face in embarrassment. “What are you laughing about?” Daniel asked when his other mug of beer arrived. 

“Seongwu,” Minhyun could barely speak as he held back his laughter. “I’m imagining him trying to control jeojang Jihoon!”

Daniel smiled, his heart bitter. He hated feeling this way. He had thought that as time passed, feelings would fade. He gulped down more beer, mentally begging the alcohol to work its magic for once.  _ Numb me please _ .

The image of smiling Jihoon appeared in his head, his heart warmed at the sight.  _ For Jihoon, _ Daniel reminded himself. This trip was for Jihoon and he sincerely hoped that Seongwu could cheer Jihoon up even a tad bit, his feelings be damned. 

When he looked up from his empty mug, his eyes met Minhyun’s hazy ones. “Our Daniel, our poor Daniel,” Minhyun slurred. “Daniel must be hurting, right?”

Daniel’s facade dropped, ends of his lips weighed down as he turned away from his perceptive friend. “I don’t know what you are talking about,” Daniel grumbled. 

“To see Jihoon in pain, you must hurt too right?” Minhyun leaned his head against his elbow. “Seongwu and I know. When with us, you don’t need to hide it anymore.” 

“I’m not hiding anything.”

“It is more obvious than you think,” Minhyun sighed. “Even Seongwu picked it up himself. When did it start? When did you find out you liked Jihoon?” 

Daniel felt his wall of resolve crumble.  _ They aren’t real. Jihoon has been a fixture of my life and that is why I care for the boy. There is nothing more.  _ These words slowly lost its conviction over the years leading up to this. His eyes started to sting because he knew that this had gone on for too long for it to be misunderstood as misplaced friendship. He didn’t feel this way for neither Seongwu nor Minhyun, and that should’ve been the first sign that his feelings were something more. 

Jihoon had always been the first one to recognise any of their feelings. When Seongwu got mad, or when Minhyun got stressed, Jihoon would be the first to pick up on it. He would approach them first and help. His perceptiveness would shock the boys since no one else could ever tell. 

That was why Daniel felt hurt. He was hurt that Jihoon did not acknowledge his feelings. He was hurt that Jihoon did nothing about it, no kind words or warm hugs. Jihoon seemed oblivious. But what hurt Daniel more was the small possibility that Jihoon was aware but  **chose** to ignore it. So Daniel continued to pretend, pushing his feelings down.  _ Because Jihoon doesn’t feel the same. Maybe it is for the best. Jihoon is the smarter between them anyway. _

Daniel reached over to grab Minhyun’s mug of beer and drank it all. Minhyun just watched as Daniel winced. “They need to make a stronger drink,” Daniel complained as he slammed the glass back down. 

“You already had 7 beers.”

“You have been counting?”

“I know you have a high tolerance but don’t take too much, it is not good for your liver.” 

Daniel grimaced. Having a high alcohol tolerance is no longer a compliment to him. He needed more alcohol to hit the same high and even more to get black out drunk. He chased for the feeling of a muted head. His thoughts were loud and he needed to drown them all out. He noticed that his tongue slowly numbed, the beer turned tasteless by his fifth beer and yet there was still no effect. Daniel felt his frustration threatening to flip his skin inside out. Daniel scratched his head in irritation. 

Minhyun looked at him again, a knowing grin on his face. That secretly annoyed Daniel even more but this was his friend in front of him.  _ And everything Minhyun had said had been spot on. _

Daniel grabbed a piece of tteokbokki and tossed it in Minhyun’s direction.  _ Petty _ , Daniel knew that but he also knew that drunken Minhyun wouldn’t pick a fight with him. Sure enough, Minhyun merely glanced at his soiled hoodie and a stupid grin returned to his face. “You threw a tteok-- HAHAHAHA!”

Minhyun’s head dropped to the table, forehead pressed against his forearms. Daniel tried to hold his own laughter as he watched Minhyun’s shoulders shake.  _ Minhyun is definitely wasted tonight. I guess it may be a good thing that I feel somewhat sober.  _

  
Daniel grabbed another piece of tteokbokki and balanced it on the back of Minhyun’s head.  _ Tomorrow clean freak Minhyun will kill me. Sorry hyung, let me have my fun or tonight while you get drunk.  _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 13/07/19 (3459) 
> 
> Day 3! And there's def going to be more than 4 chapters hahaha 
> 
> I just need to stop procrastinating


	4. Chapter 4

Sungwoon stood there, frozen solid despite being the oldest one in the room. His head was bowed, though not in shame, perhaps embarrassment? The 4Walls were positioned across from him, some sitting on a large sofa; Guanlin was detailing the events of the past weeks to Jihoon who sat there just like a little child, eyes sparkling in interest. 

Sungwoon turned to look at Seongwu, the latter looking back blankly. Seongwu had helped him a lot in the past few weeks despite not knowing of Sungwoon’s existence prior to this. It was surprising how different the 4 boys before him were to their preconceived stereotypes. 

“Sungwoon-hyung,” Jihoon said. “Can I call you hyung?”

Sungwoon nodded eagerly.  _ It was an honour. _

He recalled conversations he had with his friends about the 4Walls, all fueled by rumours spread around the school. Seongwu was the charismatic, always cheery member of the bunch, but Seongwu’s quiet and serious demeanor now was a stark contrast to that. Jihoon was said to be cold, not giving anyone the time of day unless it benefited him. And yet, looking at Jihoon up close, he noticed how expressive Jihoon’s eyes were when they made eye contact, how his youthful features reminded Sungwoon that Jihoon was much younger than he was. And now, he was actually speaking to the Park Jihoon; was he like the rumours depicted? Cutthroat and direct?

“You weren’t the only one who was scammed of money from that Sunbae. He is disgusting to have done this to so many people. I am so sorry you had to go through all of that. No one should ever been tricked into something like this.” Jihoon’s voice was soothing, something he never expected. It was deeper than he thought, more so than Seongwu’s.

It was Seongwu’s voice that injected reason into him. Prior to this, he had been avoiding his friends, running off after lectures ended before any of them could catch up to him. He thought he had needed space and time to himself to sort everything out. He had feared that his friends would respond with the “I-told-you-so”s, blaming Sungwoon’s trusting ways. 

Seongwu had been blunt. But maybe Sungwoon needed that from a somewhat-stranger.  _ “What’s wrong with you and why is Jihoon stressing out about you?”  _

Sungwoon had been confused at first.  _ Jihoon? Park Jihoon?  _

Seongwu rephrased his question a couple of times while Sungwoon just spaced out in alarm.  _ “Apologies for my poor choice of words. Jihoon’s new friend, Guanlin, seemed to have burdened Jihoon with your disappearance. What happened? Can I do anything to help?” _

The tales about Seongwu’s persuasion skills must have held some truths because Sungwoon was a blubbering mess, telling Seongwu all about how his senior had borrowed his money in the pretense of an investment to his new start-up and fled even with the police on his tail. 

_ “Then I’ll give you the money then! Problem solved!”  _ Seongwu looked confused. Perhaps, to him, it was a really small problem. 

But Sungwoon hadn’t wanted to be in anyone’s debt. He felt compelled to solve this problem on his own since it was caused by his own naivety. 

_ “If you are in such a situation, shouldn’t you lower your pride a little? Fine, you don’t know me, so don’t do it for me. Do it for the friends who care and worry for you.” _ Seongwu’s words were crude.

_ “If they want to help, let them. If this could be solved with some help, take it. Why make life harder than it already is?”  _

It was a wake up call. So what if he was indebted to his friends for life? They were his friends, they were good people. He would just work hard to slowly make it up to them for the rest of his life. And after much thinking, he realised that he was probably already set to do that even if he never received any of their help. They were so welcoming and nice to him, and he hoped to keep them forever. He hoped that they would approach him with their problems too so he could help them, so shouldn’t he do the same?

  
  
  


Meanwhile, Seongwu was on guard, standing with his arms crossed and feet apart. He stared at the scene before him, Jihoon sat on the sofa across from Sungwoon who had slowly gravitated to sit before him. Jihoon was holding Sungwoon’s hand, listening carefully. Jihoon was flanked by Minhyun and Daniel, broad shoulders squishing together. Daniel, who had the widest shoulders, looked physically uncomfortable,  _ well he would have to deal with it since he had chosen to sit there _ . Every now and then, Jihoon would send Seongwu mocking looks, making Seongwu a bit self-conscious.  _ What were they talking about anyway? Maybe I should have forced myself on the sofa like Daniel did when he arrived.  _

Then, Jihoon rose from his seat, pulling Sungwoon up along with him and engulfed him in a big hug. Little Jihoon wasn’t so tiny in comparison to Sungwoon. In fact, his shoulders concealed Sungwoon completely.  _ Does Jihoon have bigger shoulders than me?  _ Seongwu pondered, wondering how the little boy he loved had grown up so big.  _ I guess, Jihoon only looked small in comparison to us.  _ He made a mental note to measure their shoulder widths at a later time. 

Almost like magic, or a teleportation trick, Jihoon appeared in front of Seongwu, a mischievous glint reflected in his irises. This snapped Seongwu out of his thoughts, and Seongwu was overcome with a sudden bout of fear for what Jihoon had up his sleeves. 

“Hyung,” Jihoon nudged the elder with his tiny fist that was more painful than he pretended it not to be. “What happened to the cold brat I know and love?” Jihoon taunted him. 

“He is still here you buttswipe!” Seongwu retorted in response, shoving Jihoon playfully in return. It was true that Seongwu was indeed hesitant to help Sungwoon out originally; he had barely known Guanlin, let alone Sungwoon. But knowing Jihoon, he feared that Jihoon would take on his problems like his own. And with everything currently on Jihoon’s plate to begin with, he didn’t want Jihoon to suffer any more than he already was. 

“Now that that scam artist has been caught, you don’t need to busy yourself with other people’s problems when you--”

Before Seongwu could even finish, Jihoon tackled him to the ground, approaching Seongwu with a kissy face. He pushed and tried to plant a smooch on Seongwu’s cheeks as the latter struggled to keep him at bay. They started wrestling for dominance on the chess room floor, audience merely watching in amusement.

“Are they always like this?” Sungwoon whispered to Guanlin, surprised by the scene before him. 

“They are usually more physical,” Daniel replied instead. “Jeojang Jihoon has been inhabiting that body since their return from Tokyo. It has its pros and cons.”

“Jeojang...Jihoon?”

“Yesterday, they were fighting over this prop gun while acting out some scene from the Japanese movie they watched and ended up fighting,” Guanlin attempted to hold back a giggle.

“Seongwu bruises easily and ended up with bruises all over his neck and chest!” Minhyun interjected, laughing his butt off. “That’s why he is in a turtleneck even though it is hot out today!”

  
  
  
  


Sungwoon is puzzled, and that is an understatement.  _ Physical? Bruises on his neck and chest? Maybe the rumours had been true;  _ **_they were dating each other after all..._ **

* * *

“Minhyun hyung,” Jihoon called out from the couch once everyone else had left for their classes. “Have you spoken to Daehwi?”   
  


“How is it that you have never spoken to anyone else but us, and yet you know everyone’s names?”

Jihoon tossed a cushion to Minhyun’s direction, “It is a gift! Now hyung, are you going to do anything about things?”   
  


Minhyun sighed. He was fully aware of how brutal humans can be. Rumours may fade but its impact on the involved doesn’t. He had pulled a couple of strings to get the videos removed but those damning accusations still rang in his head. Favouritism, sexual orientation, sexual  _ favours _ ; if Daehwi hadn’t said them out loud, they would have still been passed around through hushed whispers. Regardless of that, they will slander Daehwi because they’d assume everyone else would do the same.  _ Go with the flow, right?  _ Minhyun scoffed internally. Bitterness coated his tongue. Teenagers have no thoughts of their own. They followed the herd mentality and for some twisted reason, idolising him and his friends was an ideal use of their time.  _ Why can’t they just leave us alone. _

His friends don’t really have an opinion on the attention.  _ In particular, Kang Daniel craves it _ , and Minhyun doesn’t understand why. Was it due to the differences of their upbringing? Despite spending all their lives together, had their separate familial relationships affected their outlook on life? Minhyun hated the scrutiny. Ever since he was a young boy, his father had always been in the public’s eye. His father took on very public cases, often defending and representing powerful people of influence. And now that he had successfully taken over as president, Minhyun had actually been relieved, assuming that he would have been relieved of his public duties. 

But he was wrong. Because men are created as greedy creatures, nothing will ever be enough to satiate that hunger for more. And after a term of presidency, his father was running again.  _ And he expects me to play a bigger role this time.  _

“The video has been taken down,” Minhyun explained to Jihoon, who had lowered himself onto Minhyun’s lap. Minhyun found his fingers instinctively weaved between Jihoon’s bangs, thumb gently smoothing out Jihoon’s forehead creases. “The talk will slowly die down. Don’t worry your pretty little mind.”

Jihoon tipped his head back, doe eyes meeting Minhyun’s, and the latter just knew that his words won’t be enough to ease Jihoon’s worries. Jihoon’s heart was as soft as his exterior and Minhyun doesn’t understand how anyone could say otherwise. They have been actively protecting Jihoon ever since they had been children; it was expected after all, since Jihoon was the youngest out of them 4. And the few episodes that had happened throughout their childhoods together that had hardened their resolve to protect Jihoon at all costs.  _ I never want to see Jihoon  _ **_that_ ** _ way again, _ Minhyun shuddered when he recalled  **the alley incident** . Jihoon had turned mute because of it. No one could get him to speak. And that terrified Minhyun.  _ Maybe if we had gotten to him sooner, _ but there was no use in recounting the past. Nothing could change it. 

Jihoon had grown up to become a fine man, strong in his own right and Minhyun was proud. 

“What do you want me to do?” Minhyun hummed, pad of his thumb combing Jihoon’s eyebrows now. “What do you think I should do?”

“It is a misunderstanding,” Jihoon spoke, lips pouted subconsciously.  _ Adorable, lovable.  _ “Maybe you should make a public statement. Clear his name?”

_ What about  _ **_my_ ** _ name? Who clears mine?  _ Minhyun quickly dashed those thoughts from his mind, nodding thoughtlessly. Daehwi’s allegations had consequences and Minhyun had successfully escaped his father’s claws, residing in Daniel’s and Jihoon’s homes in rotation. There were piles of missed calls and unread texts. But being away from his father, Minhyun realised that he did not care about the rumours at all.  _ It was dad I was afraid of. The consequences, the punishments _ .  _ But without him, I am now free. _

Minhyun returned Jihoon’s gaze, “I’ll think about it.” 

In response to this, Jihoon winked at Minhyun.  _ Oh boy,  _ Winkingie is back and he kills Minhyun every time. 

  
  


* * *

Daehwi felt the strain on his forehead as he stared at the screen. His thumb grazing the surface as he scrolled slowly, re-reading everything for the 4th time now. He could feel Jinyoung’s eyes on him, watching, worried. This was not what Daehwi was expecting when Jinyoung offered his phone up to Daehwi to take a look, after all, it was Jinyoung who confiscated Daehwi’s phone away from him. “ _ You need a social media cleanse! _ ” Jinyoung had told him, and Daehwi had unwillingly agreed.

But as he re-scrolled the twitter thread for the fifth time now, new questions started forming in his mind. He didn’t believe his eyes at first but now, reading the tweets, he could hear it in  **_his_ ** voice. 

_ Hwang Minhyun  _

_ @hwang_MH _

_ I know that @peachyniel is the only one that tweets in my name for this account but I want to come on here personally to address a few misunderstandings that rose a couple of days ago. I hope that this will be the first and last time I am tweeting on here so I will make things concise. _

_ Hwang Minhyun  _

_ @hwang_MH _

_ There has been a lot of hate and bullying directed at @magu_fairy and I want to clear up all the misinformation. Bullying is always wrong and should NOT be resorted to regardless of the situation. Do not do it in MY name or my friends because we do not appreciate it at all. _

_ Hwang Minhyun  _

_ @hwang_MH _

_ Daehwi saw my exam score as 101% and got upset, not knowing that the additional marks were carried forward from the previous test where my correct answer was mismarked and it was too late to have it scored in the online system. Daehwi didn’t know this and I understand why he got upset.  _

  
  


_ Hwang Minhyun  _

_ @hwang_MH _

_ Daehwi then made some allegations out of anger and frustration and I wasn’t kind either. We had an argument and bits of it was filmed and spread amongst the students. Daehwi has since approached me and apologised and I have done the same. I have forgiven him. _

_ Hwang Minhyun  _

_ @hwang_MH _

_ This matter concerns the 2 of us, but I don’t understand why people are getting mad in my stead. I do not condone the harassment towards Daehwi so I hope you stop or legal actions will be taken. _

_ Hwang Minhyun  _

_ @hwang_MH _

_ In regards to the allegations made my Daehwi that day, any false accusations will be dealt with legally too. Do not speak ill of me or my friends. Stop busying yourselves with our livee; focus on yours.  _

_ Hwang Minhyun  _

_ @hwang_MH _

_ I also want to offer my belated congratulations to Daehwi and Jinyoung for their new relationship. I hope that they will have a great relationship. I am so sorry for the hate directed your way. _

  
  


“Jinyoung-ah,” Daehwi said. “Why did Hwang Minhyun write this?”

Jinyoung shrugged. “That wasn’t the question I was expecting.”

“What were you expecting?”

“Something like: Hwang Minhyun knows my twitter handle? Or how did Hwang Minhyun know we were dating?!”

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


“ **How did he know about our relationship though?”**

  
  


* * *

  
  
  


Daehwi’s feet were heavy, trodding down the hallway leading to the chess club room. Based on Guanlin’s intel, Minhyun was last seen in that room. Lifting his arm felt equally as heavy, but he managed, knuckles knocking on the wooden door. 

There was no response and Daehwi was about to release a sigh of relief until Jihoon appeared behind him, “Lee Daehwi?”

That made Daehwi jump, eyes widened in shock. Daehwi tried to speak but found himself unable to form words. They got stuck in his throat and he felt beads of sweat gathering at his hairline.

“Are you looking for Minhyun hyung?” Jihoon spoke, assisting Daehwi in his obvious state of distress. “He must be inside. But he has recently been into rock music; he may not have heard you knock with his headphones on.” 

Before Daehwi could even stop him, Jihoon stepped in front of him and pushed the door open; Hwang Minhyun came into view. And like Jihoon had predicted, he had his attention on his phone, Bose headphones over his ears as he nodded his head to the audible bass.

“Hyung!” Jihoon yelled, dropping his bag by Minhyun’s feet. The latter removed his headphones before beaming at Jihoon. His hand gravitated to Jihoon’s behind, patting his bum affectionately. “Jeojangman finished his classes for the day? Want to have dinner with me?”

Jihoon chuckled, nose wrinkling at the name of endearment. He took a side step, revealing Daehwi behind him. “Hyung, you have a visitor.”

  
  


Minhyun’s smile dropped when his eyes met Daehwi’s cowering figure behind Jihoon.  _ It was now or never, _ Daehwi thought and took a brave step forward. Minhyun rose from his seat, leaving his phone on the sofa.

“I will go look for KangDan,” Jihoon said before shutting the door behind him, leaving both guys alone in the room. 

  
  


It was silent, so quiet that Daehwi could hear his own breathing.  _ Or am I breathing heavily?  _

Minhyun broke the silence, “What’s up?” 

Daehwi wished he could emulate the nonchalance Minhyun carried, instead, his head dipped low. “I never apologised to you, why did you make that tweet?” 

“So, you don’t intend on apologising to me?” 

“No, I did. I’m just surprised that you helped me.” 

“I told a white lie to get the unnecessary haters off your back,” Minhyun explained, arms crossed in front of his chest. “Jihoon had shown me the awful tweets they made about you and no one deserves any of that. Jihoon was right, as always; all I needed to do was say something to end the supposed feud. No hard feelings.”

Daehwi finally looked up at Minhyun, “I am so sorry for saying those things and hurting you and your friends. I did not mean what I said.”

“I forgive you. Everything’s alright now, right? Anyone else still pestering you?”

“They have calmed down. Thank you for helping me,” Daehwi replied. “Can I hug you, please?”

  
  
  
  


Minhyun wasn’t sure he had heard correctly. He had only received hugs from Seongwu, Daniel and Jihoon, no one else. He was shocked when Daehwi jumped into him to give him a bone-crushing hug. “Thank you so so much,” Daehwi repeated into Minhyun’s abdomen and Minhyun couldn’t help but feel a bit warm and fuzzy inside. 

  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  


Jihoon was puzzled. He stared at his phone in front of him, brightness set to maximum because he was afraid he had read wrong. 

**From: Father**

**The driver is waiting outside. Come home when you are done.**

This was out of the ordinary. His father never called for meetings over dinner unless there was something important he needed to address. Jihoon mentally ran a checklist in his head, hoping to preempt any possible reprimand.  _ No public indecency. No fights. No drunken mistakes. No hookups. No failing grades. No rumours, unless he heard about the allegations from Daehwi but that was a bit of a stretch. No parking or speeding tickets. I wonder what it could be.  _

Jihoon couldn’t help but let the dread wash over him. And it must have seeped through his facial features because the man before him took notice, staring intently. “What’s the matter?”

Jihoon snapped out of his reverie to respond to Daniel, “Family meeting. The driver is already out front.”

The last family meeting that happened was their first as a family of 2. That was when he learned of his mother’s death, through a cold stoic meal, no comfort or a chance to say his goodbyes. He resented his father then, for concealing his mother’s illness from him, for the lies excusing her absence. And now that she was gone, Jihoon felt like an orphan. His father barely cared for him before, but since her passing, Jihoon hadn’t seen him once. Jihoon hated the feeling of being weak and vulnerable. He attributed that to his father for his father hated it about Jihoon too. Ever since Jihoon was a little boy, he would get lectured by him for being “too soft”. His feminine facial features didn’t help matters either. 

“Want me to come with?” Daniel asked gingerly.

“I can deal with this alone, no worries,” Jihoon replied.

Minhyun watched Jihoon’s reactions carefully, noting the usual nibbling of his lips that were already puffing up, slightly inflamed. He was deeply worried too. The last time Jihoon’s father sent a car to pick Jihoon up was with the intent of not letting Jihoon run away after sharing the news of his mother’s death. Jihoon was imprisoned in his room for that weekend until her wake. But what could be so bad this time for Jihoon’s father to take the same drastic measures?

It was almost as if Seongwu sensed Minhyun’s unease.  _ It is rare for Minhyun to worry,  _ Seongwu thought. Seongwu rose from his seat dramatically, swishing his head from side to side in an act of mock defiance and declared, “I’m going in Jihoon’s place as a decoy. Jihoon, you run away and never turn back. No one stop me!”

Jihoon cheerily chuckled in response to Seongwu’s theatrics but as the boys walked Jihoon to the foyer, Seongwu’s plan was foiled; security personnel blocked him from entering the car after Jihoon. “I’ll be fine hyungs,” Jihoon reassured through the rolled down window. “See you on Monday!”

  
  
  
  
  


But as the car drove off, Jihoon felt his cheeks ache from the fake smile he had put up mere seconds ago. The unease crept back into his system as he felt his fingers slowly gravitate between his already grinding teeth. He resisted though, dropping his hands back onto his lap upon recalling Daniel scolding him about his bad nail biting habits.

But anxiety flowed to his limbs instead, causing his legs to bounce as he tried to relax into his seat. His mind conjured up multiple scenarios that could play out as the car slowed to a stop at the entrance of his lavish family home. 

  
  


But nothing could have prepared him for the familiar boy standing by the front doors.

  
  
  


_ What is he doing here? _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 14/07/19 (3632)
> 
> The next few updates will take time! Sorry!


	5. Chapter 5

Minhyun could feel the buzz entering his system as he took another shot of soju. He cringed as the liquid rolled down this throat, coating his insides. He attempted to shake some of the hazy feeling off because he knew that Seongwu was not a responsible drinker. 

And speaking of the devil, Seongwu had just finished yet another bottle of soju, groaning as he slammed the shot glass back onto the table surface. 

“Yah, Ong Seongwu,” Minhyun nudged his drinking partner. “Control yourself, don’t go all out today. We don’t have Daniel here to take care of us.”

Seongwu flashed Minhyun the goofiest of grins, “Then Minnie will have to take care of me!”

Minhyun chuckled. Was he expecting anything less from the Ong Seongwu? One of his best friends he had known since birth? Despite supposedly knowing all of Seongwu’s secrets, he has yet to work out the rationale behind his actions. Seongwu had always been rash, careless, but at times, Minhyun could see a small glimmer in his eyes, calculating. It was a fleeting moment before it dilutes, masked by that characteristic smirk. 

Seongwu dribbled a little; he used the back of his hand to wipe off the excess soju rolling off the corner of his lips down his chin. Minhyun noticed a slight stubble forming on the underside of Seongwu’s jaw and that was when Minhyun realised that his friend also had a rough day. 

“Will Jihoon be okay?” Minhyun asked absentmindedly, eyes still staring at Seongwu’s jawline, mind swirling. 

“You know something I don’t, Minnie. You tell me.” Seongwu’s voice was husky, laced with accusation.

“I don’t know any more than you do,” Minhyun ignored the small pinch of hurt that crawled under his skin. “All I know is that sending a security guard over? They didn’t want Jihoon to run away.”

“Last time they did that, Jihoon’s mum passed away. And before that, Jihoon set that Mnet’s Daughter’s purse on fire,” Seongwu was stoic, his eyes slowly moved to assess Minhyun’s face.

It must have been the influence of the alcohol because Minhyun felt his cheeks twitch as he recalled the fire incident. Jihoon had claimed it was an accident, but the rest of the 4Walls knew that Jihoon bringing a flamethrower to the blind date was more likely than that. 

Seongwu mirrored Minhyun’s expression, letting out a loose laugh. “It was a good thing Jihoon did that though,” Seongwu said. “I remember Daniel was about to hire a hitman on that media princess.”

“Daniel is worrying me,” Minhyun’s smile fell. “He has been too...different lately. I mean he turned us down to tutor Guanlin? What is up with that?”

“You can’t be jealous of that, Hyun?” Seongwu smirked, cockiness rising again. “It isn’t hard to understand. Daniel is smitten with our Jihoonie. Jihoonie likes Guanlin, so Daniel has to appease Jihoon by tutoring Guanlin! Simple!”

The 2 guys fell into a comfortable silence; Minhyun took another shot of soju. He felt the tips of his ears heat up.

  


“Do you know what Jihoon told me?” Seongwu slurred a little, eyes drowsily meeting Minhyun’s. “He said he always wanted a younger brother. He wanted to take care of someone else for a change. He was tired of being the youngest.”

“He takes care of us all the time though?” Minhyun took another gulp. “Do you think we are too protective? Is he trying to tell us that he wanted space? A life outside the 4Walls?”

Seongwu watched Minhyun carefully, analysing Minhyun’s reaction as he came to the same conclusion he did. But he sensed the atmosphere tighten, tense, and he felt the urge to change that. Seongwu let his lips stretch out into a mischievous grin. “You have decided to adopt the name for us?” Seongwu let out a giggle. “Look at us! The mighty 4Walls!” Seongwu puffed out his chest with gusto, pounding it with his fists like a gorilla, causing them both to rumble into another round of laughter.

They gradually eased their laughter, taking a break for a few more shots. “How can we leave him alone though?” Seongwu whispered quietly, but Minhyun heard it all. “Especially when he is going through so much?” Seongwu downed yet another shot.

“Maybe we should start by not thinking about Jihoon 24/7?” Minhyun joked and Seongwu could tell that Minhyun was almost gone, crossed the border of sober into intoxication. Their eyes met and they erupted into thunderous laughter.

“Nah, not possible!” Both of them declared.

  


Just then, a man behind them slammed an angry fist on the table surface, glasses close to falling off the table surface. “CAN YOU GUYS SHUT UP?” He rose up from his seat and stormed towards the duo. “There are people here who would like to have some peace and quiet!”

“Wrong move choosing to eat in public then!” Minhyun scoffed.

“You are the loudest one here, buddy,” Seongwu hiccuped, taking another swig of soju.

The stranger, fueled with irritation, grabbed Minhyun by his collar, pulling him out of his seat. He raised a fist, ready to strike, only to be stopped by Seongwu's grip.  
  
"I wouldn't do that buddy," Seongwu smirked evilly, before slamming his own fist into the man's eye.  
  
"You f*cker!" The man yelled.  
  
"Bitch, that was my left hand,"Seongwou sneered before throwing another punch.  
  
His friends stalked towards Seongwu and Minhyun, ready for a fist fight.  
  
"Ahhhh if only Dan and Hoon were with us, this would've been a lot easier..." Minhyun commented, his back against Seongwu's.  
  
They threw punch after punch. Minhyun grew worried as he could feel Seongwu's rage seemed to growing stronger and stronger. And then, with one deafening bone-crushing fist to one of the guys’ jaw, the man crumpled to the ground, unconscious. Shit.  
  
The fight halted into a standstill. Nobody dared to move. Other customers stared in a mixture of shock and fear. Someone was calling the police. Seongwu, in full-blown panic, crumpled to the ground, shaking the unconscious man, but to no response.  


_Shit._  
  
Minhyun rushed to Seongwu's side and felt the man's pulse. Minhyun shut his eyes in relief. _It was still there_ . _Good_. He grabbed his stunned friend and forced him to stand. "We have to leave before the police- "

Sirens blasted as the other men scrambled to gather their unconscious friend to flee.

  


_Shit_.

  


* * *

When Daniel entered the Chess room the following Monday, he knew something was amiss. Nothing in the room was out of place, nothing was wrong; but something just didn't feel right.

“Where are Ong and Hwang?” Daniel asked Jihoon.  
  
Jihoon looked over his computer screen to meet his eyes before shrugging in nonchalance, going back to playing his game.  
  
Daniel skipped towards the smaller boy, dropping his heavy arm around his shoulders. “How did dinner go the other day? You never updated any of us.”  
  
“Fine,” Jihoon mumbled, still focused on his game.  
  
Believing it to be no big deal, Daniel dropped the subject and plopped onto the seat beside Jihoon, clocking the younger's indifference to his attention on his screen.  
  
“How did tutoring Guanlin go?” Jihoon asked, pausing the game to look at Daniel with tired red eyes.  
  
“How late did you stay up to game last night again?” Daniel pinched Jihoon’s nose playfully, to which the latter merely nudged Daniel off. “Guanlin is actually pretty smart. I didn’t need to do much. Just introduced the basics to him and he just took off? He didn’t even need my help in the first place! When I left, he was still reading the econs textbook!”  
  
“That’s good,” Jihoon gave a small smile before returning to his game, not saying anything more.  
  
Jihoon must’ve had a bad night, Daniel thought, regretting his decision to not stay by his side the past weekend. _I should've dropped by his house to check in,_ he thought to himself. Jeojang Jihoon has gone and Dorm Jihoon has taken his place.

He wanted to press further, but he knew better than to disrupt Jihoon’s game flow. _I’ll ask him later_ , Daniel thought, not knowing that this decision would bite him in the ass later because Jihoon had been mentally screaming for help, for anyone to notice that he was in pain. 

  


_This I can deal with,_ Jihoon tried to reassure himself. _The only thing I can control is my reaction to the uncontrollable. Put on a smile. Everything will pass eventually._

  
  


* * *

Seongwu was late again. _How did I forget to set an alarm?_ He sprinted to the lecture hall but when he got there, dropping into his seat, he realised there was no point. The lecture would end in 20 minutes.  
  
Frustrated with himself, he started pinching the skin of his left wrist. He pinched so hard that it stained red. He tried to focus on the lecture but failed. Blood was pulsing in his ears, drowning out the voice of the professor. _Must be because of his run here_ , he thought. _His heart must be trying to fall back into sinus rhythm._ However, as time passed, the pounding didn't go away.  
  
_How did I forget to set an alarm? It isn't hard to do_. He reached for his wrist again and pinched, harder this time. It hurt. But at least it dulled the beat of his heart a little.  
  
Was his anger going to flare again? He worried as his heart rate started to accelerate again. Shit. He can't do that here. He needs to gain control. _Gain control and focus. Or else someone would get hurt again._  
  
_Just like that Friday night. Or was it the wee hours of Saturday morning?_ Everything that night was a blur but one thing stood clear: the dried blood on his knuckles was a clear reminder. He had hurt someone.  
  
_Pinch_. He did it again, twisting his skin this time. It was starting to bruise but he didn't care. He just wanted his heart to slow, his mind to stop racing, his temperature to cool. Otherwise he was going to hurt another.  
  
_Why did you forget to set that damn alarm?_ _That simple action would've prevented all of this_. It would've started his day right. _This is my_ _doing_ , he mentally reprimanded himself. _How could I be so stupid?_  
  
His fist clenched and he started to shake. He tightly shut his eyes in an attempt to regain control of his senses again. When he reopened them, everything was a swirl. The bass of his heart never regained momentum. He felt the nasty dampness between his palms and fingertips and knew that the lecture was a goner.  
  
He grabbed his belongings and walked out of the lecture hall.

* * *

  


Later that day, 3 out of the 4Walls gathered for Chess club night when Daniel noticed something alarming while scrolling down his twitter feed. Daniel frowned at his screen. The college’s gossip page had reported Jihoon and Park Woojin being seen alone on a supposed date.

_Jihoon had declined Chess night to go out on a date with Park Woojin?_

  
  
"Guys, did you see this?" Daniel showed the screen to his friends, who were downing shots of tequila.  
  
Both guys squinted at the phone.  
  
"Park Woojin?" Seongwoo asked, "The one dancing with us?"  
  
"My replacement?" Minhyun interjected.  
  
"No! He isn’t your replacement. I recruited him first! Woojin is an amazing dancer. Better than Dan and I combined," Seongwoo described with pride.  
  
"I dance better," Daniel muttered under his breath, maybe out of slight jealousy, but no one heard him.  
  
"See Daniel? Maybe Jihoon is branching out a little," Seongwoo placed a hand on Daniel's knee. 

His 2 best friends had discussed this prior, informing him about Jihoon’s desire to break out of their friend group to meet more people and make new friends. Daniel could not relate. He liked their friend circle the way it was. He found no problems with it and was a little hurt at the insinuation that Jihoon was not satisfied with their friendship. 

That single nagging thought continued to plague his mind. _What if Jihoon truly wanted to distance himself from him?_ Daniel was not prepared for that.

Seongwu’s voice broke him out of his thoughts, "He needs to mingle with more people his age. Not just with us babying him."

  
Daniel was stunned into silence, _but what if he wants to baby him forever? Must he hold back?_

_Must he watch the love of his live date other people?_

  
  


Minhyun snatched Daniel’s phone from his relaxed fingers, taking a closer look at the tweet. “Jihoon took Park Woojin to see the new Maroo Stadium? He hasn’t even taken us there for a look yet!”

“That traitor!” Seongwu roared in mock anger, clinking glasses with Minhyun before downing it.

But Daniel couldn’t say a word. All he could think of was the fact that he was not ready to let go just yet...

* * *

  


"Are you feeling overwhelmed?" Jihoon asked Woojin as they toured the stadium, "Want to take a small break?"  
  
Woojin nodded. Jihoon glanced at the branch manager as a signal and they stopped to sit down.  
  
Jihoon was giving Woojin a tour of their newest stadium. His father wanted to ease Woojin into Maroo Industries by introducing him to their newest projects. And it was overwhelming. Maroo Industries had so many sectors and divisions. Woojin tried not to stress out about all of it, but it was difficult considering the full extent if things.  
  
Woojin looked at the stage with awe. _What would it feel like to dance on there?_ With the stage lights on him? _What would it be like when this place is filled to the brim?_  
  
"You know who is performing here next?" Jihoon asked the other Park.  


When Woojin failed to answer, Jihoon whispered, "BTS" before breaking out into a fit of giggles.  
  
Woojin stared at Jihoon with heart-filled eyes. He sighed. How was it possible for someone to be so beautiful? Woojin wanted to make Jihoon smile and laugh every day; he wanted to make it his life mission. He had seen Jihoon cry before and he never wanted it to happen again. He wanted to shield him from all of life's problems and misery. He wanted to protect him, because Jihoon had been through enough struggles to last a lifetime. He wanted to do so much. He wished he could. But a week from now, he would have to extinguish all of those feelings. It would be considered illegal, right? _It would be considered incest?_  
  
"Are you overwhelmed?" Jihoon asked, "You can take your time; my father understands."  
  
"How are you taking it?" Woojin asked cautiously, "I know your mother passed away recently."  
  
"I'm alright." Jihoon smiled, "I'm happy you will be joining us. I'm happy that my father is happy. I'm happy."  
  
"My mother is not a replacement, you know that right?" Woojin spoke in a quiet voice, "She doesn't wish to be."  
  
"Your mother is very nice," Jihoon sighed as he looked off into the distance, "I couldn't ask for anything more."  
  
"Shall we head to the control rooms?" The branch manager interrupted, and the 2 Parks stood up from their seats.  
  
"Good thing you don't have to change your surname eh?" Jihoon nudged the other Park, before both boys burst out into laughter.

* * *

Minhyun ran his hand through his hair in frustration. _It had been a week since he had last styled his hair_ , he thought. Usually, he would spend 10 minutes every day to do so, making sure he was presentable, so as to not ruin his image. He had given that up for the past week, however, because he just wasn't in the mood.  
  
He was stressed. Very stressed. His father had found out about the fight and managed to keep everything under wraps. The unconscious male suffered a concussion, but was fortunately on the road to recovery.

All of this came at a price though. His father took away his freedom, picking him up after class every day to go for meet and greets, debates and other campaign events.  
  
_And Seongwu_ ...Minhyun was most stressed about him. He really wanted to check up on his friend but hadn't had the chance to. Good thing his previous lecture had ended early, he could meet Seongwu before his next lecture.  
  
Seeing the familiar figure running out of the lecture hall, Minhyun called out, Seongwou-ah!" and chased him.  
  
Jaehwan was in the vicinity and he followed the pair, blaming his insatiable curiosity.  
  
Upon hearing Minhyun's voice, Seongwu stopped and turned, eyes crazed and unfocused. This was exactly what Minhyun had feared. Seongwu was losing control.

"I'm sorry for not being here sooner," he grabbed Seongwu's hands with his own.  
  
"I'm here now. So can you take a deep breath for me?" Minhyun asked, watching as Seongwu tried to hold back his angry tears.  
  
Seongwu ripped his hands out of Minhyun's and walked towards the water dispenser. With one powerful kick, the structure cracked, causing water to flood beneath his feet. His hands were still shaking, and Minhyun spotted that, running over to his side before engulfing him in a tight embrace.  
  
"I'm going to hurt someone again," Seongwu muttered, shaking his head vigorously, "I don't want to hurt you."  
  
"You won't," Minhyun whispered into Seongwu's shoulder, "We can regain control. You are ok now."  
  
Jaehwan had watched everything. For some unknown reason, his feet moved, stepping out of his hiding spot from behind the pillar to reveal himself.  
  
"Is he ok?" He asked Minhyun.  
  
Both boys looked at Jahwan simultaneously, as if embarrassed they got caught in such a compromising position. In a frenzy, Seongwu took a step back and slipped, falling on his butt in the puddle of water. His face crumpled in despair, like a wailing baby, whining "Minnie, my pants are wet!!!"  
  
Jaehwan, chuckled, no strike that, he laughed psychotically. His contagious laughter, combined with Seongwu's miserable state, triggered Minhyun to break into laughter at the ridiculous situation, his stress temporarily dissipates.  
  


  
  


* * *

  
"What's wrong with Seongwu hyung?" Jaehwan asked Minhyun after Seongwu passed out in exhaustion across Minhyun's lap.  
  
They were now in the chess room after deciding to skip their remaining lectures for the day. Seongwu slept, peace finally overcoming his features.  
  
Minhyun swept Seongwoo's bangs to reveal Seongwu's dark circles, "He got angry I think. He hates it when he loses control."  
  
Jaehwan nodded, although still not understanding a thing. He figured Minhyun wasn't planning to elaborate further. They fell into a comfortable silence.  
  
"How's your music going?" Minhyun asked.  
  
"I haven't sang in a while..."Jaehwan confessed.  
  
Minhyun reached under the sofa they were sitting on to pull out a guitar case. _Minhyun plays? Can he get any more perfect?_ Jaehwan thought.  
  
"Here, use mine." Minhyun handed the younger his guitar, "Sing something now."  
  
Jaehwan caressed the expensive instrument. His fingers glided across the engraved "Minhyun" on its neck. He yearned to own a guitar so exquisite.  
  
"I don't want to break it," Jaehwan mumbled, causing Minhyun to laugh.  
  
"Just sing," Minhyun commanded, "Maybe you could get another $50?" Minhyun winked at Jaehwan and Jaehwan thought his heart had just popped like a balloon.

_Cold night, while breathing to the night air_  
_I take you home under the light of streetlamp_  
_The tip of my hand gets closer to yours carefully_  
_Without knowing I watched it blankly_  
_Worried that my feelings to you will be found out_  
_I behave just like a fool_  
_Just like this you_  
_Your gaze when you see me and also your hand move_  
_Your silent way of talk and even your expression are sweet_  
_And just like this you_  
_Even the step of yours going inside of house_  
_It makes me feeling pity and stopping to look back_  
_I just wanna fall in_  
_In your eyes_  
_Love you still_  
forever in my mind  


"You should sing for the charity concert," Minhyun suggested after Jaehwan finished singing.  
  
"It's too late, isn't it?" Jaehwan asked. “To audition?”  
  
"I could pull some strings."Minhyun suggested, "No pun intended. You want in?"  
  
"Sing with me." Jaehwan was shocked by his own confidence, "I'll do it if you joined me."  
  


  
  


"Sure."  
  


  
  
  
  


"What?"  
  


"Invite Sungwoon-sshi too. He has a beautiful voice."  
  
Oh my god. Was this really happening? Jaehwan was freaking out, while Minhyun remained calm as always.  


  
_An excuse to skip some of his father's events_ , Minhyun thought. _Finally_ , maybe he could breathe. His father shouldn't stop him from participating in a charity concert right? _That would be bad for his image._  
  


  
"YOU HOE!" Seongwu sprang up from Minhyun's lap, "YOU DECLINED MY OFFER AND SO EASILY AGREED TO HIS? YOU TRAITOR!"  
  
Jaehwan laughed out loud as Seongwu started to chase Minhyun around the chess room, cussing, tossing a few cushions. And Jaehwan couldn't help but feel a little special.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 19/08/19 (3473)


	6. Chapter 6

Jihoon could hear the whispers and giggles as both of them alighted the black Mercedes. _Why had he decided to wear pink today?_ No. _Why had Woojin decided to follow suit wear pink today too?_   
  
"Look! The rumours must be true! They must be dating!"   
  
"Couple outfits are so cute." 

Gay rumours sparked after photos of them together at the stadium were released on Twitter. Jihoon didn't know why they bothered him as much as they did. Surely, in this time and age, there is more acceptance?  _ It's not a crime. There's nothing wrong with being gay.  _ But perhaps it's because Jihoon was shipped with someone else that bothered him. Perhaps he feared  _ he _ would mistaken. 

_Or perhaps it was because they were shipping him with his soon-to-be step brother?_  
  
Jihoon trembled in anger and stormed toward his target, grabbing Woojin's shoulder.  
  
"Take it off."  
  
“What?"   
  
"I said take off your jumper!"   
  
"Why should I?" Woojin taunted, "We match today huh?"   
  
"TAKE IT OFF!"   
  
"What? Only you can wear pink, princess?" Woojin smirked.   
  
"DO NOT CALL ME PRINCESS!!!" In a fit of rage, Jihoon grabbed Woojin's sleeve and started pulling.   
  
Startled, Woojin fought to keep his jumper on. _What's wrong with Jihoon today?_   
  
Jihoon grew more desperate, tugging harder and harder, causing Woojin to flail around because of the force.  
  
From afar, Daniel saw the commotion and upon recognising the familiar baby pink jumper, he sprinted to the court. He was astonished to see Jihoon in hysterics, face all flushed, as he struggled with Woojin.   
  
Daniel saw red.   
  
In a fit of fury, he stormed towards Woojin and with a hard shove, he pushed Woojin away from Jihoon. And as Jihoon was still holding onto Woojin's jumper, the jumper slid off of Woojin's torso.   
  
Noticing the crowd forming, Jihoon crumpled to the ground in devastation, defeated. Upon seeing Jihoon on the verge of tears, Daniel grabbed Woojin by the arm.   
  
"What did you do to?!" He yelled, "Tell me before I kill you right now!"   
  
Minhyun ran to Jihoon's side, trying to calm the younger one down but Jihoon was in a daze. His eyes were unfocused while the pink jumper was still firmly in his grasp, his whole body shaking. Minhyun stalked towards Daniel and Woojin, standing in between them.   
  
"Daniel, this isn't the time and place. Jihoon isn't doing well," he said in a low voice, controlling his anger, "We need to go now."   
  
With an arm around Daniel, and the other holding Jihoon's hand, the trio walked away, leaving poor Woojin behind, topless.   
  
Although shocked, Woojin thanked his lucky stars for deciding to gym the day before. He hoped that Jihoon has seen his glorious abs.  
  


* * *

  
  


Seungwu already halfway enroute to the Chess Club room when he heard about what had happened. The situation sounded made up to him.  _ He was hoping it was all made up.  _ All he needed to hear was  _ Jihoon _ and  _ crying _ in the same sentence to make him go berserk. His blood was pulsing in his ears, drowning out the sounds from wveryone around him as he dashed to his destination. He broke through the door, ready to raise hell, only to see Jihoon asleep soundly in Daniel's lap, Minhyun sitting next to them in worry.    
  
Seongwu approached the boys and squat by the sleeping beauty. Jihoon's face was peaceful, albeit the tear stains running down his cheeks.    
  
Caressing Jihoon's fluffy cheeks, Seongwu asked, "What happened?"    
  
"We don't know," Minhyun answered, "They were already fighting when we got there."   
  
"When we brought him here, he didn't want to speak. I hadn't seen him like this, not since the alley incident..."    
  
Daniel remained silent. He couldn't do anything, not with the little one sleeping on his lap. However, he didn't miss the rage in Seongwu's eyes. He knew what Seongwu was planning but decided against stopping him; he figured he'd have done the same too. 

Seongwu stormed out of the room.   
  
"I'll go with him," Minhyun, too, knew what Seongwu was going to do next, "Text me when Hoonie wakes up."    
  


  
Minhyun left Daniel alone with the sleeping Jihoon. He stared at Jihoon's soft skin, slightly red and swollen around his eyes entrapped by long lashes. Jihoon looked so serene. Daniel patted Jihoon's hair. "Talk to me please," he pleaded, "Don't shut us out again."   
  
\----

Seongwu's hands trembled as he opened the door to the dance studio. Upon laying eyes on his target, he grinned maniacally. Knowing that Minhyun had probably followed him thanks to his trusty sixth sense, Seongwu locked the door behind him.    
  
"Ong Seongwu! What are you doing?" Minhyun could be heard from outside, "Stop before you do something you will regret!"    
  
But Seongwu was filled with too much rage, built up for months. Reason it out, his therapist had always said. But that will not work this time. The floodgates have opened and there was no stopping it.   
  
"HYUNG! YOU BETTER STOP OR I'LL BREAK DOWN THE DOOR! YOU ARE PISSING ME OFF!" Minhyun yelled from the other side of the door.    
  
"You got a shirt on now ey? They told me you'dbe shirtless," Seongwoo grabbed Woojin by the collar, "Jihoon isn't speaking to us, what did you do?"   
  
Chills were sent down Woojin's spine. Seeing Seongwu so crazy with fury scared him.    
  
"I-I didn't do a-anything," Woojin stuttered. He was so terrified that his satorri escaped his lips.    
  
Just then, with a loud bang, the door slammed onto the ground to reveal an even angrier Minhyun.    
  
"WHY DID YOU LOCK THE DOOR?!" Minhyun reprimanded Seongwu, "WHAT WERE YOU GOING TO DO? KILL HIM? DO YOU REALLY WANT TO GO THERE? YOU KILL HIM AND I'LL MAKE SURE YOU NEVER SEE THE SUN AGAIN."    
  
Angry Minhyun is scarier than angry Seongwu, Woojin thought.Seongwou must think so too because he released his grip on Woojin and took a step back. His anger now in check.   
  
"Now, tell us what happened."

  
  
  


* * *

  
  


"Hoon-ah, this is Woojin's jumper right? Let's put this away?" Daniel tried to gently pry Jihoon's little fingers off the fabric.    
  
Jihoon wouldn't budge and kept looking at the pink jumper. "This is mine...why must I give it to them?" He looked up at Daniel, his eyes brimming with tears. It was the first time Jihoon had spoken in almost an hour.   
  
Daniel grabbed Jihoon's face, scanning it "Did Woojin hurt you anywhere?"    
  
Jihoon's eyes hardened and he forcefully turned away from Daniel.    
  
"I can beat him to death if I wanted to! I can hurt  **_him_ ** !" Jihoon's hands start to shake.    
  
"Jihoon-ah, you know that's not what I meant...We were all very worried because you looked so scared...like the last time Minhyun found you in that alley..."    
  
"I'm much stronger now! I can fight! I'mas much of a man as you guys are!" Jihoon's eyes blazed into Daniel's. "I'm not weak. I may be small but I am not weak."    
  
Daniel sat across from Jihoon on the floor, finally understanding what was going on. "What did your father say hmm? What did he say that got you so riled up?"   
  
Jihoon couldn't speak. Not in front of Daniel. He couldn't say it.  _ He doesn't want him to leave.  _

But he saw Daniel's eyes flash with hurt and that hurt him even more.   
  
"He told me to stop acting like a child. Then he told me to stop acting like how a gay would. A man shouldn't be so emotional. A man shouldn't wear pink."    
  
"You know how uncle is like. Remember what your mom always told you though? Only the strongest men wear pink!" Daniel attempted a small smile.   
  
"That's the thing..." Jihoon paused, "I'm scared because I've been feeling weird things lately. My father could be right. I think I may be gay..."   
  
Daniel was stunned into silence and Jihoon took that to offence.    
  
"See! Look at how you are reacting! How was I meant to tell anyone? I don't even want to be gay! I don't know what to do!"    
  
Jihoon's heart broke upon seeing Daniel's face. It was only one half of the truth and Daniel was already reacting like this.  _ What if he told him... _   
  
"Jihoon-ah, is liking another man such a bad thing?" Daniel whispered, "I like no-  _ love _ one too."   
  


  
Daniel grabbed Jihoon's hands, “Whoever you like at the moment, it is all okay. There is nothing wrong with being--” 

“Don't say it,” Jihoon interrupted, turning his head away from Daniel in shame. “Don't say that word.”

Daniel wasn't having it. Sure, it took a while to come to terms with it but it was Jihoon he's in love with, and that boy was so damn easy to love. He had struggled with his feelings for so long. This admission gave Daniel mixed feelings; he was relieved that Jihoon was into men like he was but he couldn't ignore the insinuation that Jihoon had someone else in his heart, in his mind.  _ And he wasn't sure if he was ready to find out who. _

  
  
  


But Daniel also felt like the time was now. His heart felt like bursting out of his chest. “Can't you see that nothing matters because I'm so in love with you to care otherwise?" Daniel couldn't stop the words that slipped between his lips. He gripped Jihoon's hand tighter, bracing himself for the rejection he had played in his mind so many times before.   
  
"Niel-ah, are you sure you don't care? Jihoon's lips turned into a mischievous smirk. 

Daniel gave Jihoon a look of confusion.

  
  
  
  
  
  


“It's you, dummy,” Jihoon let out a relaxed laugh.   
  
  


  
  


"OH THANK GOD!" Daniel grabbed his own chest, "That confession was a slip up, but THANK GOD!"    
  
Jihoon chuckled at the love of his life.   
  
"Now can you stop with all the angst and give me a hug? I desperately need one right now to stop my soul from leaving my body."    
  
Jihoon didn't need to be told twice.

* * *

  
  


"Are you still mad at me?" Seongwu asked Minhyun.    
  
No response. Seongwu stared at Minhyun's back. They were now both left alone in the dance studio. The air was tense; Seongwu felt it.   
  
"I'm the one with anger management problems, shouldn't you be the one calming me down? Seems like the roles are reversed now ey?" Seongwu joked.    
  
"Are you kidding me right now? Can you really joke at a time like this?" Minhyun turned around to glare at Seongwu. "Did you see how scared Woojin was because of you?"    
  
"I think he was more terrified of you, Hyuna"   
  
Minhyun stood up, unable to take it anymore, "I'm going to check on Jihoon."   
  
"Give them some time with each other...Can't you see that Daniel needs that?"    
  
Minhyun looked back, puzzled, "You think?"    
  
Seongwu scoffed, "Daniel is an open book. It's a wonder how Jihoon can be so oblivious to it all."    
  
"We know now Jihoon was going through a lot...He was probably too caught up with his own problems. Let Daniel baby him alone for a couple of hours; I'm sure they'd both like that."    
  


“Do you think Jihoon likes him too?” Seongwu asked. “The same way Daniel does?” 

“There's something special between them both,” Minhyun walked back to Seongwu's side and sat down. He stretched out his long legs ahead of him. “Maybe because they are closer in age? They always seem to have that eerie telepathy thing going on. I won't be surprised if they indeed started dating one day.” 

  
"How about you and Jaehwan then?" Seongwu asked, catching Minhyun off guard, "Did you accept his confession?"   
  
"H-how did you-"   
  
"He asked me for help. What did he end up doing?"   
  
"He sang the song of when we first met. Really nice and simple."   
  
"Did you accept?"   
  
"No."   
  
"Hmm."    
  
A comfortable silence surrounded them. Minhyun fell into deep thought as he fiddled with his phone. He worried for Jihoon, seeing him in such a traumatised state like that brought him back to the alley incident.  _ Those same eyes, losing all focus. _   
  
"Seeing Jihoon like this again scared me.” Minhyun broke the silence.

  
"He's ok now, Minhyun, you saved him, like you did last time."   
  
"I didn't save him. When I was there, everything was...done,” Minhyun said. “Did you know the alley incident wasn't even the first? Jihoon had been kidnapped so many times as a child, it's a miracle he isn't messed up."   
  
Seongwu was confused.    
  
"Auntie said that because Jihoon was such a pretty child, a lot of bad people had tried to taken him before. Remember the security personnel back then?"    
  
Seongwu had no idea. "No wonder auntie was so protective over Jihoon. I miss her so much, I can't even imagine how Ji is feeling..."   
  
Minhyun agreed, "I miss her too."    
  
"Shall we go back to check up on them?"    
  
Minhyun dug out his phone showed Seongwu its screen and laughed, "Daniel specially requested another 30min alone with Jihoon."   
  
"So he's alright then?"    
  
"I think so." Minhyun replied with a smile.

  
  


* * *

Woojin felt guilty. Maybe he should've told Minhyun and Seongwoo the full truth. But he knew that wasn't his truth to tell...   
  
When he heard from them that Jihoon was in the chess room, he decided to head over to apologise.    
  
He knocked on the door and upon hearing Daniel's invite, he walked in.    
  
There, he saw Jihoon, asleep soundly on Daniel's lap.    
  
"He fell back asleep again," Daniel explained, "Do you want me to wake him up?"    
  
"Aren't you mad at me?" Woojin asked, puzzled. He knew Daniel would be with Jihoon and expected him to berate him like Seongwu did a while ago.    
  
"Jihoon told me everything. It wasn't your fault. In fact, Jihoon really wanted to apologise to you. He'd kill me later for not waking him but I can't bear to now, he needs to rest."   
  
"I don't think he told you everything though..." Woojin spoke warily, playing with his fingers. "That pink jumper is actually his. I stole it.”

“Hm, he may have implied something of that sort,” Daniel replied thoughtfully. “I’m sure you had a reason.”

“Did he tell you that our parents were getting married?” Woojin sat across from the pair, shrugging off his backpack onto the ground. When Daniel nodded, Woojin continued, “I overheard their conversation, between Jihoon and his father. I thought it was nonsense that a man cannot wear pink. Jihoon looks good in pink too.”

“He does,” Daniel murmured, fingers lacing through the fringe of Jihoon’s hair. 

“His father is still a bit awkward with me so I knew he wouldn’t say anything if I wore pink too. I wanted to make a statement. Jihoon seemed to have noticed me wearing his jumper so I assumed he was alright with it. But I guess he must have changed his mind because he yelled at me to take it off. And then I called him a princess and he blew up..."   
  
_ Never call him a princess _ , Daniel made a mental note to himself.    
  
"I don’t think you need to worry too much. You should let him know once he wakes, though. It will be better to hear this from you than from me. He has been through a lot these past couple of months, I hope you can forgive him for that," Daniel said.   
  
"There is nothing for me to forgive. He has been so welcoming to me after I moved in. He was having a bad day and I shouldn't have pushed his buttons."   
  
"I'm sorry Woojin-ah," Jihoon rose up from Daniel's lap, rising like a chinese zombie from his coffin. This made Daniel jump in fright; he had always been a bit on the fainthearted side after all.   
  
Daniel gave him an incredulous look, "Were you listening?"    
  
"Why are you apologising for me?! I can do that myself!" Jihoon scolded.   
  
But before Daniel could defend himself, Jihoon interrupted, turning to Woojin. "Anyway, I'm sorry I vented it on you. I'm happy that I've now got a brother like you, and I hope that we can grow closer in the future."   
  


“I really hope so too,” Woojin looked down at his fingers bashfully. “Thank you so much for accepting my mother and I so easily into your family.”

“And I thank  **_you_ ** for dealing with me these past few days,” Jihoon replied. “I haven’t been the easiest person to deal with. I wish I could do something in return.”

  
"Then do a dance duet with me." Woojin suggested abruptly.   
  
"Um, ok?" Jihoon replied.   
  


  
"Huh?" Daniel exclaimed, "You didn't want to do one with me!"    
  
"You've got a solo! You are busy enough!"   
  
"I would've made the time!"   
  
"Please, you would just complain about mixing up all the choreo, then vent it on everyone-"    
  
"Vent it? Who was the one who got all angsty because he thought he couldn't share his burdens with his friends, huh?"   
  
"The burden INVOLVED my friends! Of course I couldn't share it!"    
  
"Wow, good job at what you did there. Look at what happened because of your decision!"    
  
"Let's talk about this later! Woojin is-- gone?" Jihoon was surprised that Woojin had left without them knowing.   
  
Daniel squished Jihoon's cheeks together between his palms, "Never hide anything from us again, okay?"   
  
Jihoon could only nod.  _ He wasn’t planning to anymore anyway. _   
  
"You lost so much weight! Your fluffy cheeks are almost gone!" Daniel exclaimed in dramatic despair.    
  
  


Woojin chuckled hearing their exchange. Shutting the door behind him, Woojin skipped out of the chess room in excitement. He's got a duet to choreograph!

  
  


* * *

"Everyone decent in there?" Seongwu called out cautiously before opening the door to the chess room.   
  
Minhyun followed him in and locked the door behind them.    
  
"We brought whiskey!" Seongwu showcased the bottle to the 2 younger ones.   
  
"He took it from your place," Minhyun tattled to Daniel before receiving a shove from Seongwu.   
  
Daniel smiled, "That's fine!"   
  
Minhyun and Seongwu stared at Daniel incredulously. With Daniel's arm still around Jihoon, they concluded that the small boy must be responsible for Daniel's good mood.    
  
The chess club was indeed a codename. They met up once a week and usually drank until they blacked out. It started during Jihoon's 16th birthday when Minhyun's father had just been elected as President. Overwhelmed with the stress of everything, they locked themselves in Daniel's father's alcohol chamber (yes, his father has one of those vaults) and participated in some underage drinking. They spoke about everything; their parents, their studies, their dreams, their problems, their stresses. They usually talked until Jihoon was knocked out.  _ Since he was the weakest drinker amongst them. _   
  
They got into trouble, of course. Daniel suffered the brunt of it as his father lashed out on him with his belt, which triggered another binge drinking session. This time, the boys took it to Daniel's room.   
  
This became a monthly occurrence and grew increasingly regular as the poor boys' stresses grew with age and maturity. They managed to start a "chess club" to get an allocated room so that they can still partake in their weekly binge session and still make it to class. Suspicion grew, of course, but nobody dared question them considering their families probably paid enough to purchase the whole building.   
  
"Why didn't you tell us about your father, Ji?" Minhyun asked, serving Jihoon a glass of whiskey.    
  
"Could we start drinking first before we hit the hard questions?" Jihoon whined, clinking his glass with everyone else's before downing it.   
  
As the weakest drinker, Jihoon was, by default, the boys' "threshold". When he falls asleep, everyone stops drinking. That has been their rule. Jihoon was not happy when he learnt this fact and made a bet that he wouldn't be the first to be knocked out, a bet he loses every week. As punishment, the boys always took his BTS photocards, a punishment that Daniel was secretly grateful for.  _ What's so good about that V dude anyway? _   
  
Already feeling the buzz from the first glass, Jihoon explained, "You guys were all caught up with your own problems. Seongwu hyung with your anger management flares, Minhyun hyung with your worries for the future and Niel with whatever it was that you were sulking about. You guys never shared any of those with me and I just assumed that you wouldn't want the burden of mine either."    
  
"That's not true Hoon-ah, you promised right? No more secrets."   
  
"How did you know?" Seongwu asked, addressing his anger issues. He had thought Minhyun was the only one who knew.   
  
"All of us knew for many years," Jihoon sighed, "the way your eyes light up with fury, your fists clenched so hard your nails leave marks on your palms, how you smile when you vent to minimise the seriousness and impact of your words. We've known each other since we're 5, Seongwu-ah. I know all of you inside out. If you weren't ready to share, we wouldn't ask about it. Same logic I relied on when I was dealing with my father's remarriage."   
  
_ Jihoon had always been the perceptive one, _ how could Seongwu have forgotten that?    
  
Then Jihoon turned to Minhyun, "As for your problems, Jaehwan told Woojin and Woojin told me." Jihoon shrugged.   
  
Minhyun made a mental note to  _ kill _ Jaehwan later.    
  
"Why couldn’t you decipher my problem then?" Daniel looked at Jihoon accusingly.    
  
"You were hard to read!"   
  
The other 2 boys burst out in laughter. How was it possible that Jihoon could be so dense when it came to Daniel? They could read him like an open book!    
  
"Which brings us to the next question, so are you guys a thing now?" Seongwu asked upon seeing Daniel rubbing Jihoons back in an act of comfort.   
  
"Yeap!" Jihoon responded, "He confessed so it's all good!"   
  
Daniel stared at Jihoon, a look of betrayal,  _ why was he so blunt about this _ ?   
  
"Finally!" Minhyun clasped his hands together, "No more mopey Niel-ie!"   
  
"Ok, enough about us, how is it that Woojin is still alive Ong?" Daniel asked Seongwu.   
  
"OMG let me tell you, Minhyun got so mad that I had to be the one to calm him down! He broke the door and..."

  
  
Jihoon smiled at his friends as Seongwu blabbered away.  _ Maybe things are finally turning for the better?  _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 20/08/19 (3710)


	7. Chapter 7

"What are you doing here?" Jihoon asked the taller man when he appeared at his doorstep, not actually minding that Daniel has decided to pay him a visit.  
  
"Parkji, this is the second time you are asking me this today," Daniel replied sulkily. _Right, he did say that when Daniel appeared at the library while Jihoon was tutoring Guanlin. He didn't intend on hurting his feelings though._

"Am I not allowed to see my boyfriend, who I have been crushing on since forever, more than once a day?" Daniel whined to his new boyfriend, shoulders slouched in mock defeat.  
  
Jihoon took a step forward and rested his arms on Daniel's broad shoulders, fingers playing at the nape of his hair. The latter automatically pulled the smaller by the waist, while simultaneously guiding him towards the bed. Jihoon waddled backwards, a stupid grin plastered on his face because of their awkward movement. _Like they were slow dancing… or penguins waddling._ He retreated until his shins bumped against the length of his bed, causing him to plop down.  
  
Daniel, on the other hand, took the opportunity to sit on Jihoon's lap. Jihoon wasn't sure if it was Daniel's long legs around his waist or Daniel's weight that chained him to the bed.  
  
"You are so heavy, you big baby," Jihoon teased, causing Daniel to encase Jihoon's equally broad shoulders into a tight embrace.  
  
Daniel nuzzled his chin into the crevice of Jihoon's neck, amazed at how his neck seemed to be sculpted just right for Daniel's jaw. Jihoon arched back, leaning against his own arms that supported their weight.  
  
"I want to sleep here tonight," Daniel whined, "Let's sleep in this position."  
  
Jihoon's chest shook with laughter. "Why are you so clingy? It's not like we are breaking up tomorrow. "  
  
Daniel pulled away a little to stare into the galaxies that were Jihoon's eyes, "Don't break up with me."  
  
"I'm not."  
  
"I just need to have you here by my side so my heart can calm down knowing that you are ok."  
  
"I am ok."  
  
"Are you?" Daniel tried to search for a single cloud of doubt in Jihoon's eyes, "I need you to talk to me. Talk to me more."  
  
Jihoon removed his hands from Daniel's shoulders and started playing with his fingers. He looked down at them. Daniel did too. With his right hand, Daniel lifted Jihoon's chin so that he could look into his eyes again. He took solace being able to see them. _They calmed him_ , Daniel realised. _Or maybe he was mesmerised._  
  
"What are you thinking of?"  
  
Jihoon's looked away.  
  
And then Daniel knew. " _Who_ are you thinking of?" He asked.  
  
"I just miss her so much," Jihoon whispered, "She always had the right things to say. I'm so sick of crying. I just want all this ...heaviness to stop."  
  
Daniel stepped off of Jihoon's lap to kneel in front of his broken heart. He grabbed Jihoon's trembling hands, not knowing how to console the lost boy.  
  
Jihoon placed his right hand against Daniel's cheek to wipe away a stray tear. "I'm sorry. Today was supposed to be a happy day for us. I tried. I really tried. B-but.."  
  
Daniel gave Jihoon a sad smile, "Silly Jiggly, why are you wiping my tears instead of your own? I'm happy that we are finally together. But if you are sad now, let us be sad together. Just for today."  
  
Daniel stood to tower over the boy who has become his whole world and caged him into a big embrace.  
  
"I'll keep you company tonight," Daniel kissed Jihoon's fluffy mop of hair, "Dreams or nightmares, I'll be here, ok?"

  
  
  
  


“You are just using me as an excuse to sleep over, aren’t you?” Jihoon accused to which Daniel merely let out a big laugh.

  
  


\---

"Why are we drinking again?" Minhyun asked, "Did you get dumped?"  
  
"No," Seongwu responded, taking another swig of beer, "Just seeing those 2 rugrats so happy together makes me feel so miserably alone."  
  
"How about that one?" Minhyun pointed with his beer bottle, "She's your type."  
  
They were seated at the VIP table at the in a club, in a relatively quiet area, but in full view of the loud dance floor below. But unlike their last visit, they were alone, without Daniel or Jihoon.  
  
"I don't even know if I got a type anymore," Seongwu sighed into the mouth of the bottle before laying his forehead on the table. "I'm so bored with all the women and the sex."  
  
Minhyun looked at his distraught friend; he looked incredibly dashing tonight, black dress shirt loosely tucked into fitted pants, hair perfectly gelled up to give his forehead some rare exposure. He was sure dressed to impress. _The alcohol was finally hitting him_ , Minhyun thought, because his voice slurred when he made this bold suggestion, "Want to try something new?"  
  
Seongwu looked up at his best friend and blinked really hard. For some reason, his mind jolted at the insinuation. He stared back at his best friend, studying his perfect facial features. _He resembled a gentle looking fox_ , Seongwu thought, _no wonder he was popular with the ladies_ . _Hell_ . He was genuinely considering Minhyun’s offer. His mind was set to autopilot, constructing reasons, _no-- excuses_ , to bed his best friend. _Must be the alcohol talking_. He grabbed his coat and rose from his seat. He downed the last of his bottle of liquid courage before jerking his head to signal towards the exit. Minhyun's irises darkened and tailed his best friend out of the club. 

  
  


_Let’s just say neither of them slept in their dorm rooms that night._

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


Minhyun had been awake for at least an hour now. _It must have been the work of his body clock, so used to waking up to his blaring phone alarm at 7am._ Unusually, however, he remained in the bed. He stared at his sleeping partner's face, his mind still blank. It had been blank for a while now. _What have they done last night?_ _  
_  
_His moles inferior to the edge of his eyes formed a constellation_ , Minhyun thought. If his fuzzy memory serves him correctly, he was particularly enthralled by them last night. They were almost hypnotising.  
  


  
  
  
  
  


_Did he lick them?_ He wondered. 

  
  
  
  
  
  


Slowly, bits and pieces of last night replayed in his mind. _That wasn't the only thing he licked,_ **_oh god_ ** **.** **  
**  
That sudden realisation caused Minhyun to let out a groan in despair. 

  


And that caused Seongwu's eyelids to twitch before springing open.  
  


  
  


"F*ck" Seongwu turned to his best friend who laid naked beside him. _Yes, f*ck they did indeed._

  
  
  
  
  


* * *

  


Jihoon stared at Minhyun, brows furrowed in thought. Something must have happened between his 2 friends because the air felt...tense. _It was like they are trying to avoid each other’s eyes but yet their eyes end up finding each other again anyway._ It was frustrating watching his best friends act like this. Jihoon decided to focus on Minhyun, the easier to read between the 2, and he noticed that his gaze was short of Seongwu, albeit looking in that same direction. His eyes zeroed in, _his eyes are locked on Seongwu’s grip on Hyungseob’s shoulder._

  
  


_Interesting_.

  
  


Seongwu had begged for another Chess Club session tonight after they were done with the final rehearsals for the charity concert. _“Stress,”_ Seongwu had said when Daniel asked why. And that was what raised the first red flag with Jihoon; Seongwu never admits he’s stressed. _Bruises his ego_ , Jihoon thought. But Minhyun had agreed to join their binge… _That excludes a fight breaking out between them from the list of possibilities._

Seongwu clapped his hands together, breaking Jihoon out of his thoughts. “Let’s start with practice! Please tell me everyone still remembers the routine!” Their team shuffled towards the stage front, stretching their limbs to warm up in preparation as they did so. 

Daniel had a hand behind Jihoon’s back, halting when he realised that Jihoon wasn’t budging. The latter was staring at Seongwu, nose scrunched up in contemplation. And Seongwu? He was looking at Minhyun. Daniel watched as Minhyun slowly met eyes with Seongwu. They both stared for a while, maybe exchanging a secret conversation. 

Jihoon sighed beside Daniel, turning his attention back to him. “Let’s go KangDan,” Jihoon announced as he trudged towards the stage, leaving a confused Daniel in tow.

  
  
  
  
  


_Does he have to fight Seongwu for Jihoon’s attention still?_

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


Rehearsals went on without a hitch. The dance numbers were performed well, with minor tweaks needed in terms of spacing and lighting. The dancers returned to the seats to watch the rest of the rehearsals. 

  
  


Seongwu hadn’t realised that he had been staring. His eyes were burning and dry by the time he realised, possibly because he hadn’t blinked in the last 3 minutes. 

“Can you turn up Hyunbin’s mic please?” The coordinator instructed. “And let’s run it again!”

  


“Minhyun hyung’s voice is pretty, right?” Jihoon nudged Seongwu’s voice to whisper. It made goosebumps rise on his skin. “It is like honey. So clear and smooth.”

Seongwu cleared his throat before responding with a grunt that could pass off as a yes, Jihoon guessed. _Interesting_ , Jihoon smirked.

  


Daniel heard Jihoon’s compliment on Minhyun’s voice and felt jealousy bubble within him again. _Despite Jihoon being his boyfriend officially, it seemed like this love pyramid (with Jihoon as the apex of course) will never end…_

  


The piano instrumental started again and Jihoon melted into Daniel’s side. Their fingers intertwined. Daniel relaxed by Jihoon’s side, jealousy quickly forgotten. Daniel did a glance left and right before placing a peck behind Jihoon’s ear, earning a hard slap from the latter on the shoulder. Daniel chuckled before risking his bicep again to place a longer kiss on Jihoon’s temple.

“Stop it,” Jihoon hissed. “There are people here!” 

“No one is looking.”

  


“Please spare my lonely ass please,” Seongwu grumbled beside Jihoon before redirecting his attention to Minhyun, who was just about to sing his part.

* * *

  
  
  
  
  


“What is Daniel doing?” Jinyoung asked Daehwi. They were watching the rehearsals too and were sat a few rows behind the 4Walls. Daehwi paid his boyfriend no mind, returning his attention to the stage.

“Look! He did it again!” Jinyoung pointed this time. “He definitely kissed Jihoon!” 

Daewhi turned to Jinyoung and whispered, “Keep it down. You probably saw wrong. It’s hardly bright enough to make out anything.”

  
  
  
  
  
  


Jihoon rested his head on Daniel’s shoulder. The 2 of them were whispering furiously, with their lips so close to each other they must as well meet already.

_And they did._ Daniel pushed forward and captured Jihoon’s lips with his.

  
  


“OH MY GOD!” Daehwi gasped. “Do you think Woojin hyung knows about this?”

  


* * *

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


“I’m telling you, something is going on between them!” Jihoon whispered to Daniel as they walked down the corridor leading to their chess room. 

“They seem fine to me?”

Jihoon's eyes widened incredulously. He pointed to his other 2 friends, both walking arm lengths apart on opposite sides of the corridor. "Nothing going on?! Kangdan, you must be blind."  
  
"Blinded by my love for you Parkji," Daniel started slowly walking towards his boyfriend, catching him off guard and causing the latter to back up against the wall.  
  
Daniel caged Jihoon in with his strong arms pushed up against the wall, diving down to give him a kiss. Jihoon tilted towards Daniel, meeting him halfway. Jihoon caved; _Daniel had been well behaved for the rest of the rehearsal anyway,_ Jihoon reasoned with himself. Their kiss grew in hunger and desperation, with Daniel fueled by his jealousy of seeing his man dancing with someone else. _(although he knows that that someone else is Jihoon’s soon-to-be step-brother)_ Jihoon gripped Daniel's shirt, pulling him closer, his other hand raised to trace Daniel's jaw. This sent tingles down Daniel’s neck and shoulders. Daniel was about to reach underneath Jihoon’s bottoms to hoist him up when they were interrupted.  
  
"Guys, break it up," Seongwu snapped at the lovebirds, causing them to step away from the wall, Jihoon flushed red and Daniel with a cheeky grin.  
  
Daniel grabbed Jihoon's hand and they jogged to catch up to the pair as the 4 of them entered the chess room.  
  
Daniel immediately plopped down onto a beanbag, tugging Jihoon down with him onto his lap.  
  
"Today, we switch places. You shall be on my lap!" Daniel declared before squishing Jihoon's cheeks between his palms. "Hehe look, a Jigglypuff sandwich."  
  
Minhyun rolled his eyes as he sat on the adjacent sofa. "You guys are so gross."  
  
Seongwu, on the other hand, opted to sit on the floor. Jihoon brushed Daniel's hands away before turning to Ong. "What's wrong?"  
  
Everyone’s attention turned to the grown man sat on the floor. Jihoon left Daniel's side to squat by Seongwoo, head cocked to the side to examine Seongwu's face.  
  
"I-I" Seongwu stuttered, "I really want to drink right now." causing all the tension to dissipate and everyone to laugh at the pouting Seongwu.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


"Let's make things more interesting!" Jihoon's eyes sparkled with delight, "Let's play truth or dare! Whoever the bottle lands on has to down a shot before choosing truth or dare. The rest of us will present options and you get to pick one. The person whose option was picked downs a shot too!"  
  
Daniel looked down at the younger in worry. "Yah, at this rate, you'll black out within 5 minutes!"  
  
Jihoon turned to look straight at his boyfriend, sending a message for Daniel to trust him. A message that Daniel must have miraculously deciphered because he grabbed a nearby empty bottle and rested it on the floor before proceeding to sit by Jihoon's side.  
  
Jihoon was counting on Seongwu's rotten luck with games for this to work. Seongwu was infamous among the 4Walls for being horrible at games. He always loses.  
  
Whenever they played snakes and ladders, even if Seongwu was leading, he'd always land on the longest snake right a spot before the finish line, taking him all the way to the start again.  
  
In poker, if Seongwu had a straight flush, someone else would have a habd even better, a royal flush.  
  
There were many other examples that reinforced Seongwu's _legacy_ as the black hole. That was what Jihoon was counting on today. Seongwu's black hole luck has never failed before. _There's no reason for it not to work today._  
  
With the flick of his long slender fingers, Daniel spun the bottle. Minhyun prepared the shots.  
  
Sure enough, the head of the bottle landed on Seongwu who let out a cry in despair. 

_None of them were surprised._  
  
"Truth or dare?" Daniel asked.  
  
"Dare!" Seongwoo responded, downing his first shot.  
  
"I dare you to pick Minhyun's nose!" Daniel said.  
  
"I dare you to sit on someone's lap, front facing them for the next 3 rounds." Jihoon contributed.  
  
"I dare you to do the _Marilyn Monroe_ tomorrow before the concert." Minhyun suggested, causing Nielwink to raise their eyebrows in question.  
  
Minhyun had never liked the _Marilyn Monroe_ as a punishment. And for him to dare Seongwu to do it? _Something must be really wrong here_ , Jihoon thought. 

  


  


When Jihoon's parents left on a business trip, they left 14 year old Jihoon in the care of the maids in the house. Bored, Jihoon called his friends over to his house to play. His father had a strict no-leaving-the-house rule while he was away, so his friends had no choice but to visit.  
  
Jihoon's mansion was deemed the most boring out of the 4Walls, with his father's strict no games or toys policy. That was what prompted them do _it._  
  
"What's in this room?" Seongwoo asked Jihoon, pointing to the pair of double doors when they explored the premises.  
  
"My mum's wardrobe." Jihoon answered nonchalantly, not realising that his friends, aged 16 and 17, had developed a certain curiosity with the female gender.  
  
Their eyes sparkled with interest. Daniel reached for the golden handles and tugged the doors open.  
  
Jihoon had never entered his mother's closet. Why would he? It probably looked identical to his. _But boy was he wrong._  
  
It was extraordinarily bright, maybe because of the diamond jewellery in the glass case reflecting light, or the elaborate silky white dress on the mannequin. Jihoon stared at his mother's wedding dress in awe. _That was a big dress_.  
  
Unbeknownst to him, his friends were ransacking the racks. Minhyun pulled out a shorter white swing dress and started to strip to put it on. The boys guffawed at Minhyun, who was struggling to zip the back of the dress himself.  
  
"You have to remove your underwear too," Daniel teased, "It looks bad under the dress."  
  
Minhyun obliged, going full commando under that dress, bringing rowdy laughter to the 4 boys.  
  
That dress appeared again a couple of years later during one of their binge drinking sessions. All 4 of them were too drunk to remember the details, but they do remember Minhyun putting on that same dress, again going commando. But this time, Seongwu had a leafblower on hand. (Their drinking sessions were crazy)  
  
Seongwu took aim at Minhyun's skirt and blasted. The satin fabric rose and flailed around, leaving his privates on full display. The boys laughed while watching Minhyun struggle to keep the skirt down.  
  
Seongwu woke up the next day, cuddling the leafblower having no recollection of how he obtained it or who it belonged to. Well, it belonged to him now and has been ever since, residing in the chess room.  
  
Minhyun, on the other hand, woke up with a very shrivelled up member which he claimed lasted a few days. Probably an exaggeration, but nobody ever wants doubt him.  
  
The Marilyn Monroe is a dangerous act, never played again since, although the boys often tease Minhyun about it with obscene images and videos in their possession.  
  
  


  
  
  


And that memory was what prompted Seongwu to _carefully_ consider his options.  
  
"Jihoonie! I'll sit on your lap!" He exclaimed, expanding his arms out like wings as he shuffled towards the younger, only to be stopped by his other best friend, Kang Daniel.  
  
"No! Jihoonie is mine!" Daniel pounced onto Seongwu, tackling him before he could reach Jihoon.  
  
Jihoon crawled over to Minhyun, clinging onto him as he broke down into hysterical laughter. He peeked over Minhyun's shoulder to see Seongwu pinned onto the ground causing him to laugh some more. Seongwoo yelled a load of explicit curses but Daniel never relaxed his hold.  
  
"He looks like he's been crucified!" Minhyun exploded into a fit of laughter, collapsing backwards and also taking Jihoon down with him. Everyone was a mess and they have barely even drank.  
  
Rules were made to be followed, so Seongwu ended up sitting on Jihoon's lap for 3 rounds which consisted of Daniel stripping down to his boxers, Jihoon downing a shot of mayonnaise and Seongwu grinding on the potted cactus.  
  
Seongwu spun the bottle and it pointed to Minhyun. _Finally_ ! Everybody had been waiting for this.  
  
"Truth or dare, Minhyun?"  
  
"Dare," Minhyun confidently replied.  
  
Daniel: "I dare you to call Jaehwan up and make him come here."  
  
Jihoon: "I dare you to take Daniel's dare."  
  
Seongwoo: "I dare you to kiss Jaehwan."  
  
"What the hell is this?" Minhyun exclaimed. "Jihoon, yours doesn't count."  
  
"I have a proposal,” Jihoon smirked. “I will come up with an alternative if you decide to pick mine. Do you want to take my preposition?”  
  


Jihoon has always been the more tame out of the 4Walls (and also the nicest). _He could trust Jihoon, right?_  
  
Minhyun downed his shot, slamming the glass on the ground. "Deal," he wiped his lips against the back of his hand.  
  
"I dare you to hold Seongwu's hand for the remainder of the game." Jihoon, himself downed his shot so quickly that Minhyun never got a chance to retract his decision.  
  
"You gave him an easy one!" Daniel whined, raising his own hand with fingers interlocked with Jihoon's, "We've been doing it for hours now!"  
  
Jihoon removed his hand from Daniel's grasp. "Well, we are stopping now becaise you are being annoying." He chided his boyfriend. "So what if I gave him the easy dare? Hyunie hyung is my favourite!"  
  
"Your favourite?" Daniel scoffed, "Then what happened last night?"  
  
The couple continued their squabble, not noticing the tense silence between their friends.  
  
The dare was indeed simple. If he had been dared to do this a week ago, he would have grabbed Seongwu's hands with no qualms. But now? _Something had shifted_. He hasn't even had the time to make sense of what had happened last night. But if he hesitates, Jihoon will know that something is amiss... _or did he already know and this was him testing out his theory_?  
  
"What do you know?" Minhyun sighed, directing his question towards Jihoon, interrupting the couple's wrestle for dominance.  
  
"I don't know anything?" Jihoon turned to Minhyun with those large innocent doe eyes and gave a shrug.  
  
Minhyun shook his head, "Don't try to trick me with that cute face."  
  
Minhyun and Seongwu locked eyes for the first time that night and seemed to be having a secret conversation.  
  
"OH MY GOD, YOU GUYS HAD SEX DIDN'T YOU?" Jihoon exclaimed, pointing to Minhyun and Seongwu. _It all made sense now_. Their eyes never meet. They flinch with every accidental touch. They hardly spoke a word to each other. 

_Oh god, they had sex._  
  
Seeing how his friends chose to plead the fifth and remained silent, Daniel's mouth drops open. "What the f*ck," he screamed, earning a mild slap on the cheek from his boyfriend. 

  
  


  
  
  
"Explain." Jihoon ushered the pair to answer.  
  
"Minhyun initiated it!" Seongwu jabbed his finger towards him accusingly.  
  
"Well you didn't say no!" Minhyun retorted back. "We both got pretty drunk yesterday and I suggested to experiment. He immediately grabbed his coat and dragged me into a hotel room!"  
  
"I did not!" Seongwu argued, "You tore away my clothes first!"  
  
"Well you went down on me before that!" Minhyun then paused, realising what he had just said. He risked a glance to the now quiet couple, both their jaws hung agape.  
  
Minhyun squeezed his eyes shut, attempting to collect his thoughts before speaking again. "We were both drunk, and needed something to do. And we did it. That's all."  
  
"Wow." Daniel leaned back against the beanbag he was sitting on. "Hoon-ah, you should appreciate my restraint now. If you had picked either of those 2 animals, who knows what would've happened next?!"  
  
Jihoon aimed a painful jab at Daniel's side, giving him a glare while he's at it. 

  
He turned his attention back to his pair of friends who had resorted to hanging their heads low in embarrassment.  
  
"So, have you guys talked about it?" Jihoon asked. The pair shook their heads.  
  
"Are you guys going to talk about it?" Jihoon asked again.  
  
"Is there anything to talk about?" Seongwu replied. "We drank, I got horny. I wanted something different and he offered! It was a one time thing! It obviously doesn't mean anything else!"  
  
"You want me to hold his hand?" Minhyun taunted, refusing to admit defeat, "Fine!"  
  
He grabbed Seongwu's hand as the latter took another shot to calm his nerves.  
  
Jihoon deadpanned towards his boyfriend who seemed to do the same. They both telepathically agree to drop the subject, knowing that pursuing it further would cause conflict.  
  
By the time they adjourned their mental meeting to turn back to the pair, Seongwu's cheeks were flushed red, eyes unfocused.  
  
"It meant nothing to you!" Seongwu slurred, poking Minhyun on the cheek, "So it means nothing to me."  


Jihoon's heart broke at the hidden confession. He crawled to the older and leaned on his shoulder.  
  
"Emotions are hard," Seongwu wailed, "Anger, sadness, frustration. Why am I the only one without control over it?"  
  
Jihoon caressed Seongwu's head in comfort, "Not true! I just had my meltdown yesterday," Jihoon let out an awkward laugh, "You are perfectly fine."  
  
  
Seongwu soon fell asleep, drooling on Jihoon's shoulder, against Daniel's wishes of course. Minhyun pulled out the mattress from under the sofa. Daniel lifted the his slender friend and laid him on the mattress.  
  
"Oh my god!" Jihoon exclaimed suddenly, hands covering his mouth in excitement.  
  
"What?" Daniel turned to his boyfriend.  
  
With the brightest smile spread across his flushed rosy cheeks, Jihoon declared "I didn't lose this time! I'm not the first one to pass out!"  
  
He puckered his cute lips towards Daniel, demanding a "victory kiss" from his boyfriend to which he willingly complied.  
  
"Parkji," Daniel spoke gently to his fluffball, "You must be tired, let's go sleep ok?"  
  


He gently laid Jihoon by sleeping Seongwu's side before covering both boys with a blanket. Jihoon's eyes drooped and with a few heavy blinks, he fell asleep, still holding Daniel's hand.  
  
"Don't hurt him, ok?" Minhyun spoke for the first time in a while.  
  
"I don't intend to." Daniel pressed his lips against Jihoon's head. "How are you, hyung? I'm no Jihoon but even I can tell that whatever happened yesterday isn't as straightforward as how both of you are making it out to be."  
  
"It's weird... I've seen all of your dicks since we were children. And I've never felt anything before and now..." Minhyun ran his fingers through his hair, "When did Jihoon's dick evoke a different response with you?"  
  
"Woah! Woah!" Daniel held out his palms in defence, "We aren't as advanced as you guys. We haven't done it yet."  
  
"When did your feelings evolve then?" Minhyun reached for a bottle of beer.  
  
Daniel looked at the sleeping angel, caressing his soft blazing red hair. "I don't think there was a specific turning point. I think it changed slowly over time. The girls no longer satisfied me. And I started yearning for something more permanent. Jihoon had always been there? The little fluffball of sunshine that I want to protect. And then one day, was it the Orientation Camp for the new freshers? We were mentors. Jihoon was sat by the campfire. His sparkly eyes were lit up, brighter than the fireplace. I swear my heart did one final pump and stopped for a whole minute. Really." Daniel placed his hand against his chest, causing Minhyun to chuckle.  
  
"That was when I knew." Daniel continued, "I didn't fall in love with him then, but that's when I _knew_ that I will never set eyes on a more beautiful person."  
  
Daniel leaned forwards towards the tipsy Minhyun, "So, when was _your_ heartstopping moment? When you saw his dick?" To that, Minhyun whacked Daniel with the sofa cushion, causing the latter to burst out in a fit of uncontrollable laughter.  
  
"So? What are you going to do next?" Daniel asked the older.  
  
"I honestly do not know."  
  
  
  
  
  


  


* * *

  
Daniel sniffed Jihoon's neck obnoxiously, causing the smaller to stir, groaning in annoyance.  
  
"What are you doing?" Jihoon whined, spinning to squish his face into Daniel's chest.  
  
Daniel tightened his hold around Jihoons waist, whispering, "No dreams last night?"  
  
Jihoon shook his head in response. He felt Seongwu's presence behind him. "Seongwu must have been very tired," Jihoon whispered, careful to not wake him, "Is Minhyun hyung next to him?"  
  
"He left a few minutes ago to practice with the vocal group."  
  
Jihoon snuggled deeper into Daniel's arms, sighing in content. "What do you think Minhyun hyung is going to do?"  
  
"Hm?"  
  
"I heard you guys talk last night."  
  
"They should talk soon is what I think," Daniel whispered into Jihoon's hair. "If both of us had spoken sooner, maybe we could've gotten together months earlier."  
  
Jihoon playfully bites onto Daniel's collar, "You think too highly of yourself. As if I would've accepted you then."  
  
Daniel leaned away slightly to take a look at his boyfriend's face. He pinched Jihoon's nose tip, scrunching up his own face is fake disgust. "Why am I dating such a brat?"  
  
Daniel felt something moist against the skin of his pinky, and retracted his hand away from Jihoon's tongue. "Ew!"  
  
We're dating now," Jihoon scoffed, "You shouldn't mind this!"  
  
Daniel leaned in towards the brat, licking his nose instead, "Payback." He whispered before dipping lower towards the younger's lips.  
  
"Urgh, get a room," Seongwu groaned behind Jihoon, shoving the couple off the mattress.  
  
Nielwink knocked heads as they fell onto the hard ground.  
  
"How had we managed the past few months sleeping on the cold hard floor?" Jihoon grimaced, rubbing his back. It had only been a month ago that Jihoon managed to convince Minhyun that purchasing a mattress for Chess Club was a good idea. _They slept over so often anyway._  
  
"You always slept on my arm, dumbass," Daniel complained.  
  
"Dumbass?!" Jihoon's eyes lit up with fury, "Said the person who wanted to kiss me a second ago?!"  
  
"He isn't wrong," Seongwu piqued, "You slept on my chest the other day. And Minhyun's thighs."  
  
Jihoon pouted at Seongwu. "You guys offered!"  
  
"Plus, who'd reject Minhyun's honey thighs? And have you seen that ass?" Jihoon commented, earning a death glare from his jealous boyfriend.  


Seongwu grew quiet, sitting up from his position and scanning the room. 

"He's avoiding me right?" Seongwu muttered, head hung low upon noticing Minhyun’s absence.  
  
"No no, he's rehearsing the song with the other vocals." Jihoon consoled the older, although he was not very sure himself.  
  
Seongwu let out a tired sigh. "Do you think I ruin us?" He looked towards his friends in panic.  
  
"What would you want, if you could be honest with us?" Daniel asked bluntly, "Do you want him to forget it ever happened? Or did you hope it would become something more?"  
  
Seongwu scratched his head in frustration. "I don't know."  
  
"Simpler question," Jihoon asked, "Would you want it to happen again?"  
  
  


  
  
  
  
  
  


  
  
"Are you nervous?" Minhyun asked Jaehwan after his voice cracked for the third time that day. "Maybe you should rest your voice."  
  
"Well singing with someone who rejected me isn't the most comfortable thing in the world," Jaehwan retorts sarcastically. “Why are you doing this? I heard that you couldn't join Seongwu hyung's dance because of your dad."  
  
"He probably knows now," Minhyun shrugs, "But it'll probably ruin his reputation more if news got out that he doesn't want his son participating in a charity concert."  
  
Jaehwan nodded thoughtfully. "You and the others slept at the chess room last night?" Jaehwan asked curiously, "What do you guys do there?"  
  
"Play chess," Minhyun answered, _a little too quickly_ , Jaehwan thinks.  
  
"My friends are convinced you guys all bone in there." Jaehwan let out a nervous chuckle while Minhyun stilled; this topic of conversation stung.  
  
"Have you?" Jaehwan asked curiously, breaking through Minhyun's temporary trance.  
  
"Jaehwan-ah, I'm sorry for-"  
  
"Nobody should apologise for rejecting somebody else's confession,"Jaehwan interrupted, "You like someone else, that's all."  
  
"I do?"  
  
"That day at the chess room? With Seongwu hyung? I had a hunch that you either liked him or me." Jaehwan elaborated, "Well, I hoped it was me. Now I know it wasn’t."  
  
"Are you really going to give up music?" Minhyun's attempt to change the subject doesn't go unnoticed but Jaehwan played along anyway. It felt like rubbing salt on a raw wound that Minhyun would avoid the topic like that. It cemented the fact that Minhyun did not feel the same as he. And Jaehwan couldn’t help but feel like a fool to think that he had a chance in the first place.

The bitterness of his thoughts seeped into his words.  
  
"Yup, this will be my last performance I guess? And I'm singing with the guy who rejected me."  
  
At this, Minhyun rolled his eyes. He was used to handling dramatic people thanks to his experience with Seongwu. _Let’s not think about him for now._

If only Jaehwan knew what he had prepared for the little Mandu, he wouldn’t be so crass with him now. _He hoped that Jaehwan would be so touched by the gesture that he would shed a few tears._   


  
  
  
  
  
  


* * *

  
  


  
  
Jihoon was currently laying against Daniel's hard chest, both of them enjoying some alone time in the chess room after Seongwu left to style his hair.  
  
"Your shoulders are almost as broad as mine," Daniel mumbles into Jihoon's hair, "Stop growing up so fast."  
  
"Don't say it like that," Jihoon pouted, "You are going to sound like a pedophile."  
  
Daniel's chest vibrated beneath Jihoon's back, "Your height alone makes me feel like a pedophile."  
  
Jihoon attempted to wriggle out of Daniel's hold in defiance but failed. Daniel played with Jihoon's tiny fingers, rubbing over his short fingernails. "I’ve never asked, but why do you bite your nails?"  
  
Jihoon shrugged, "My fingers just gravitate towards my teeth whenever I get stressed or bored. I nibble and I feel better. I can't explain it really."  
  
Daniel kissed every fingertip of Jihoon's hand, claiming them all as his. "Don't bite them anymore. Who knows what kind of bacteria you are ingesting." Daniel chided.  
  
Jihoon elbowed Daniel's ribs, causing him to drop Jihoon onto the hard floor.  
  
"Ah so sorry!" Daniel exclaimed while the latter rolled on the floor in mock pain

  


* * *

The charity concert rolled around and went on without a hitch. But Minhyun was on edge. When he stepped onstage for his performance with his group, he noticed a familiar face in the first row. Dread washed over him as his father gave him a stiff smile. _Something tells him that his father already knows about_ **_it_ **.

All the performances ended and everyone was invited back onstage for the closing. 

President Hwang walked up, requesting to give a speech. Minhyun's eyes widened in shock, not knowing what his father was planning.  
  
"Did you know about this?" Seongwu whispered into Minhyun's ear, to which Minhyun muttered a weak no.  
  
"Giving back is very important to my family." His father began, "That is the main reason why I urged my son to participate in this concert despite his busy schedule."  
  
_Lie_ .  
  
"The concert was done very well. I am so blown away that I really wanted to give this impromptu address."  
  
_Lie_ . Minhyun knew he had definitely planned this to get under Minhyun's skin, as punishment for Minhyun's defiance.  
  
"Amos Orphanage holds a very special spot in my heart."  
  
_No. Please don't say what I think you plan to._ Minhyun tightened his hold on Jihoon's hand. He doesn't even remember when he had reached for it, but Jihoon's hands were already shaking in Minhyun's grasp, his head hanging low.  
  
Daniel manoeuvred to stand in front of the vulnerable boy, in an attempt to physically shield Jihoon from the impending hurt. He held Jihoon's other hand behind his back while Jihoon rested his forehead against Daniel's back, body completely concealed from view.  
  
Minhyun risked a glance towards the younger, only to see glistens of tears starting to form.  
  
"Why is uncle doing this?" Seongwu questioned, also noticing Jihoon's reaction, his own voice shaking in anger.  
  
"One of my best friend's wife came from that Orphanage," the President continued, seemingly oblivious to the emotional chaos he's causing the 4Walls behind him. _Or maybe he didn’t care; this was his intent._ "We were all very close. But sad to say that she had just passed away a couple of months ago. In memory of Park Jiyoo, mother of Park Jihoon, I'd like to make a donation of 500 Million won."  
  
The whole hall broke out into murmurs. Many of them not even knowing about Jihoon's mother's passing. Jihoon stayed still, tears still falling but he was eerily still. Woojin appeared by Minhyun's side and together with the 4Walls, they surrounded Jihoon, guiding him off the stage, away from all of the sympathetic chatters and stares.  
  
  


  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
  


  
"I'm fine," Jihoon reassured his friends who were all sitting in front of him. "I'm really okay!"  
  
They were all gathered in the chess room after the concert, all holding Jihoon's hands. That made for a very strange arrangement since Jihoon only had 2 hands and there were 4 others with him.  
  
"It's been months since she passed, and I'm dealing with everything better now." Jihoon gave a brave smile, "Besides, uncle made a grand donation to Amos Orphanage. Thank your father for me. hyung."  
  
"He did this to spite you, right?" Seongwu asked Minhyun, "He came here because you have been ignoring him right?"  


“Something like that.”

  
Woojin was lost. "Why are you ignoring him?"  
  
"His dad has been dragging him around for rallies and other campaign events," Daniel explained, while his arm subconsciously wrapped around Jihoon's waist. "But hyung, why did he come all the way here?"  
  
"I haven't been home in a while," Minhyun confessed. "I'm tired of doing everything he wants me to do. In fact, I'm taking a gap year next year."  
  
"WHAT?" All the boys exclaimed.  
  
"I want to spend time to discover what I want to do. Without my father's influence."  
  
"What are you planning to do?" Seongwu asked, "Are you leaving the country?"  
  
"Maybe," Minhyun replied, "I'm not sure where yet though."  
  
Seongwu nodded silently.  
  
"You guys should talk," Jihoon suggested abruptly, while Onghwang looked at each other, "Shall we leave?"  
  
"No need, we'll head out," Minhyun rose from his seat, reaching out his hand for Seongwu to grab onto. "We'll be back."  
  
The two left the room holding hands. _That's a good sign right?_ Jihoon pondered, as he redirected his attention to his brother.  
  
"Are you really alright, Hoon-ah?" Woojin asked the red haired man.  
  
"I will be," Jihoon says with certainty, "I still miss my mum but that will never change anyway. She wouldn't want me to be sad all the time. Not when I am so blessed to have you guys who care so much for me."  
  
Daniel tightened his hold on Jihoon's waist, pressing his lips against his nape.  
  
Woojin cringed, "You guys are gross."  
  
"Jihoonie is mine," Daniel taunted the other Park.  
  
"Well, your _Jihoonie_ and I live under the same roof!" Woojin retorted back, causing Daniel to sent a flying kick Woojin’s direction.  
  


"Children! Shut up!"  
  


  


* * *

  
  
  
"I'm sorry," Minhyun broke the silence.  
  
They were now sitting in a cafe which was completely empty because nobody drinks coffee at night unless it was exam season. _Well, except Minhyun and Seongwu_ . They frequented that particular cafe for late night chats typically after their binge drinking sessions. But unlike those other times, the air was tense.  
  
Seongwu sat rigidly, making no move to sip his latte; He doesn't trust his shaky hands.  
  
"Why are you sorry?" Seongwu cleared his throat before asking.  
  
"Let me rephrase," Minhyun starts again, "I am sorry for ignoring you these past few days. The sex started as nothing. And now, I don't know."  
  
Seongwu reached for the teaspoon and stirred his coffee, turning the coffee art into indistinguishable swirls.  
  
"I care for you. And I care for Niel and Jihoonie too. I just don't know if I care the same way anymore. There's so much I need to figure out, not just about us but me too. And that's why I want to take a year off. But before I decide, I want to know what you think."  
  
"What does it matter?" Seongwu sighed, "You are leaving anyway."  
  
"If you don't want to share, then I'm going to talk." Minhyun was growing frustrated. Seongwu usually had a lot to say, _why was he holding back now?_ _Wasn't he the aggressive one?_  
  
"Have I had dirty thoughts about you before? _Yes_ . Have I ever found you attractive? _Yes_ , and you know this. Did I regret having sex with you? _No_ . Am I gay? _I don't know_ . Probably bisexual but I'll have to sleep with another girl to check. Do I want to do that, though? _No_ . But I want to sleep with you again. Is it just lust? _No_ . Because I care about you, about us too much to ruin this. So _yes_ your opinion matters because I don't want to hurt you. I never wanted that. Now can you say something please? Anything?" Minhyun rambled on.  
  
Seongwu just stared, jaw slacked and open; In his lifetime of knowing the mighty Hwang Minhyun, he had never witnessed this side of him before. He had always known what to say, always poised. But that word vomit that just came out of Minhyun's mouth broke that image. Seongwu chuckled to himself, shaking his head in disbelief.

  
_And Minhyun took an offence to that._  
  
"So I've been thinking," Seongwu's eyes opened wide, staring right into Minhyun's, "Can I come with you?"  
  
Minhyun raised his eyebrows, baffled. "You are doing that stupid thing where you assume I know what you were thinking. I can't hear your thoughts, Seongwu. I need context."  
  
"Oh, right," Seongwu blushed in embarrassment. He did this often-- he thought he had verbalised his thoughts but they never left his lips in the first place.  
  
"I don't know what I'm doing, neither do I know how I feel about you, really. In fact, I think we may be on the same page on that.” Seongwu explained, taking a deep breath. “I need to figure things out too. So what I am suggesting is can I come with you on your soul searching trip or whatever you want to call it?"

"Are you really willing to come with me?" Minhyun asked. 

"It's not like I have any solid career plans at the moment, maybe this will be good for me too." Seongwu replied.

"Nielhoon will have a blast showing off their degrees when we return," Minhyun laughed and Seongwu joined in. All anxiety about the uncertainty of the path ahead seemingly dissipated; it was almost like he was at peace with this, _finally._

In a year, they will return as hopefully new people. 

_Or maybe not,_ but they have time to figure it all out anyway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 21/08/19 (6975)
> 
> This marks the end of this part! Do check out the next work in this series! It is the sequel to this fic!
> 
> Also, there is the smut chapter for the Onghwang part if you are interested! (https://archiveofourown.org/works/16016618)
> 
> You can follow me on twt @lykelee171 and read the og socmed there on my pinned! You can also leave me a comment! That will be nice ^^
> 
> Thank you so much for reading!

**Author's Note:**

> For my returning readers, please don't spoil anything in the comments! :P  
> Hope you like it!


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